The Ties that Bind Us
by Kage3
Summary: *COMPLETE* Cloud leaves the group in a desperate attempt to find Aerith. Tifa is left with no one to love her. After a brush with death, she finds solace in the most unexpected person. Can their clashing personalities coexist?
1. Default Chapter

A/n: Hey guys, here again, and I'm starting another Rufus and Tifa pairing fic. WOOT! Anywhoo, this one may get a little graphic, I dunno. I just may end up getting embarrassed and changing it though. Just a warning. This one will have a higher rating because of language and maybe graphic fight scenes. Let the story begin!  
  
Disclaimer: My storyline. No one can sue me!  
  
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Rejection was slowly setting in on the once optimistic kick boxer named Tifa Lockheart. Cloud, her childhood sweetheart, had left her to rot here in Nibelheim, not even leaving a letter telling her where he was off too.  
  
But he didn't have to. She already knew where he was headed.  
  
Aerith Gainsborough. The last remaining Cetra.  
  
Cloud left to find her, he felt a strong feeling that she wasn't dead.  
  
When Tifa heard this, she snorted and had the thought in her head as this, "Boy is he gonna be surprised when he gets there and exclaims, 'Oh, Aerith!' and all he finds is a rotting corpse." And she mentally slapped herself for even thinking such a horrible thing.  
  
Everyone saw her die. She had no pulse. Cloud laid her to rest in the calm water beneath the temple. Even Tifa's optimism couldn't mentally bring her back. Cloud's eerie obsession was starting to scare her.  
  
Finally, months after Sephiroth had been defeated, and after they all were given a hero's welcoming ceremony, Tifa was positive Cloud wasn't coming back for her. It was just too much to ask for. Finally giving up on him, Tifa went to New Midgar, a project in the making.  
  
The old city, having been destroyed, was now an eternal resting place for all those killed in the Meteor disaster. Like a cemetery, people left flowers in the ruins to remember their loved ones. No one was to move or rummage through the ruins of the old city. It was the mark of a lesson learned, and the lesson was learned most by ShinRa Inc.  
  
Now one of the bigger benefactors of the new city, ShinRa had resolved to help make the city a better place than the old one, with better living areas than the slums could have ever hoped to be. A new leader had not been revealed yet, but wary eyes kept the company on its best behavior.  
  
Tifa had thought about opening up a new bar, but decided against it. She needed time to think about what she was going to do with the rest of her life, now that AVALANCHE was separated. They all still communicated, but they didn't operate anymore.  
  
"What am I gonna do now?" She thought. Being twenty-five and in good physical condition pointed down the road of finding a mate. But that thought scared her to death. She'd never loved anyone other than Cloud. Who could possibly be in her future?  
  
She called up another one of her childhood friends, Reno, who was still working for ShinRa, but not as a Turk, and asked what he was up to and if he had any friends.  
  
"Sorry Teef, not much I can do for ya there. See, with all this construction and my sobering up, I don't have much time for partying; therefore, I've lost touch with all my guy friends. Well, except for Rude, who, by the way, has a huge crush on you. But I don't think tall, dark and bald is your type. But call me again soon, because I could use a bit of partying. You'll find someone, no problem. You're young and beautiful. Don't be surprised if some guy just falls in your lap." His brotherly advice cheered her, but didn't completely fill the void.  
  
So, she decided to wander around the new city and see what was going to be built for entertainment and to pass the time.  
  
ShinRa was again building a central headquarters, but it was nowhere near as huge. Still the only power company on the Planet, they found new ways to provide electricity to towns without using mako. They used different resources to lessen the strain on the Planet.  
  
Tifa walked by, the fear of the company lessening every day. They seemed to be up to nothing, completely changed by the events that occurred because of them. But as she was still walking around with her head in the clouds, (yes, pun intended), she did not notice the scaffolding above her head was collapsing. In fact, she was so out of it, she was totally oblivious to the debris already falling around her, which included bricks and paint cans. Only when a stack of shingles fell directly in front of her did she realize the danger she was in.  
  
The whole scaffold was about to fall down on top of her.  
  
She would have screamed but it all happened so fast that she very nearly had the wind completely knocked out of her. She had her eyes tightly shut and her arms over her head, but to her surprise, nothing was falling on her. She opened her eyes just a bit, and gasped in shock.  
  
A man had pushed her out of the way of most of the rubble, and was hunched over her, taking the beating as the rest of the scaffold fell.  
  
Her eyes widened, but then shut tight again when another brick hit the concrete next to her face.  
  
Finally, when the scaffold had dumped all its contents onto the sidewalk below, the man weakly called to her. "Are you all right?"  
  
Tifa looked around, seeing that they were just about covered in rubble, nodded quickly, and started to panic.  
  
The man strained to hold what seemed like a mountain of brick, shingle, paint cans and wooden boards on his back. "Don't worry... we'll get out of here." His voice seemed to falter as he locked his elbows in place.  
  
Tifa could see a bit of daylight right behind the man's head, but it was almost too dark to see his face. All she could see was his eyes that seemed to glow an icy blue, looking down at her. But before she could say anything, a scaffold pole detached itself and fell straight across the man's back and head.  
  
His eyes widened for a moment, staring down at her, and then dimmed as he fell limp.  
  
Now Tifa felt what he was holding from her. The weight seemed unbearable. But the steady breathing in her ear from the man on top of her kept her calm for some reason. She knew she was going to get out of this alive and she was going to thank this stranger for saving her life. It felt a bit strange, with his body so warm against her own. His head fell just over her shoulder, nose and lips against her neck.  
  
A voice above them called to them through the debris. "We'll get you out of there, don't worry!"  
  
It just took the team five minutes to uncover the pair, but the man that had saved Tifa's life was in poor condition. He had a concussion, a few broken bones and numerous bruises and cuts along his back and arms.  
  
Tifa, on the other hand, was just fine, with the exception of a few bruises on her shoulders and back, mainly from when the man pushed her to the ground. They sent them both to the hospital nonetheless, and patched them up with cures and potions. They had to put Tifa's rescuer in a hospital bed to monitor his concussion; the pole that had hit him had not been a light one.  
  
Though she didn't have to, she stayed in the hospital, but they wouldn't let her in his room for the longest time. She wanted to thank this man. Soon, after about an hour, they let her in. The first thing that she noticed was that this man bore a striking resemblance to Rufus ShinRa. She laughed. "That can't be. He died when the ShinRa headquarters collapsed." She thought. Tifa had watched it fall herself. There was no way he could have survived. She walked closer to inspect.  
  
He was just lying there. Looking helpless. Rufus ShinRa could never look the way that this man looked now. In a sleep of innocence, his head drifted off to the side, mouth barely parted. He was very attractive. His blonde hair spilled out over the wrap around his head, falling into his eyes. Those gorgeous baby blue eyes. Nope, no way this could be Rufus ShinRa. But, there was something that caught her eye. He had a strange scar just to the left of his left eyebrow, near his temple. It had to be a childhood wound, back when hospitals just used traditional medicines.  
  
But it made Tifa's memory flash back to when Cloud was about to fight Rufus on the balcony at the HQ. Rufus came right up to her first and gave her an icy grin that gave her chills. But one of the things she noticed about him was a scar near his left temple. Could this man in front of her really be Rufus ShinRa, the man that supposedly died in the Weapon incident? Could it be the same man that saved her life? She looked closer at the scar.  
  
"Excuse me, but what the hell do you think you're doing? I have a personal space range of about three feet. So kindly move yourself back." A voice startled her. She looked down at the man. His eyes were staring straight up at her with the same cold stare that she'd been given so long ago.  
  
Tifa obeyed and stepped back. "I... I'm sorry. I was just trying to figure out who you were. I um... wanted to thank you for saving me and apologize for not being more careful... I've been kind of out of it lately. I'm sorry you got hurt for my stupid mistake."  
  
He looked away. "It's not your fault. It's ours for stacking the scaffolding so heavily. They're not meant to hold such great weight. It was the least I could do to make sure no one got hurt because of our mistake. Is there anything else you want?" He said, impatience creeping into his voice on the last sentence.  
  
"Well, I'd like to know the name of my rescuer. I know this may sound silly, but you look a lot like Rufus ShinRa."  
  
"It's not silly. I am Rufus ShinRa." He looked at her indignantly.  
  
Tifa nearly fell over backwards. "Wait wait... Let me get this straight. You were in the ShinRa building when it collapsed, correct?"  
  
Rolling his eyes, he nodded.  
  
"And you survived the fall virtually unharmed?" She asked breathlessly. One of their mortal enemies was still alive and quite well.  
  
"Well, yes I survived obviously, but I wasn't unharmed. I had nearly every bone in my body shattered. It wasn't a nice stay at the hospital, you can imagine." He gave his arms a once-over. "Hm. Not as much damage left as I thought."  
  
Tifa continued her questioning. "You were helping at the building site?"  
  
More sighing, Rufus shook his head. "Don't look so surprised, Lockheart. I've done a lot of manual labor in my day, thank you very much. I'm not as spoiled as some may think."  
  
"One more question. Are you sure you didn't get a bad blow to the head during the collapse? Because if I remember correctly, you saved me from what could have been a rather painful death today." She said, scratching her head.  
  
He looked at her and laughed. "Damn, Lockheart. What on earth is going through that head of yours?"  
  
"Nothing. I just figured you liked watching painfully slow deaths." She said rather coldly, remembering the plate that fell onto Sector 7.  
  
"You know, it's people like you who really slay me. Here I am, atoning for a hell of a lot of sins I committed in the past, and trust me, they run through my mind everyday. The lifestream (and a hell of a lot of mako) let me survive and gave me a second chance at life, knowing the lesson I'd learned and myself knowing how many people were killed at my decisions. I know what I did wrong. I know I can't do much for those people I killed or their families. But if I started over and used what money I had left from the company to build a new city, maybe I could start a new reputation too." Someone had obviously left Rufus' speech button on, but he did have a point.  
  
"I take the whole blame for the Meteor incident, even if it was my father who ordered Sephiroth to be born. I'll take the blame for the killing of the Planet, even if it was dying long before I came to control the company. Hell, I'll even take the blame for the plate that fell on Sector 7. I wasn't even here, but I'm a ShinRa, so it's my fault." He looked her dead in the eye. "I'll even apologize to you, for the trouble I gave you in Junon. Oh, and I'll let you in on a secret: I had that key dropped by your foot on purpose. I knew you held the solution to defeating Sephiroth. You wouldn't have trusted me if I just let you go, and that many more people would have died. When I saw that you were about to be crushed by the scaffold, I figured that as long as you lived the world would be in good hands, because when it was in my control, things went horribly awry. Is there anything else I should apologize for?" He sat up and began pulling the IV's from his arms.  
  
Tifa, completely astounded at what he had to say, stared at him. Now that she thought about it, other than the whole Junon thing, he really hadn't been bad. And now that she knew that he didn't mean anything bad in Junon, she felt that much worse for condemning him. "Rufus... I didn't mean it like that. It just surprised me that you saved my life today. I'm sorry I was so cold. Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" She laughed nervously, trying to make a joke. "I'll buy you a latte."  
  
Not laughing, and not smiling, but still sounding rather amused, Rufus looked at her. "Fine. But I think you owe me more than that." He said with a hint of a smirk.  
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A/n: All right, the first chapter's up. I'm aiming for this to be hopefully as successful as Ice was. It's funny to look back at the beginning of Ice and see how I improved in my writing skills over that year. Now looking at the contrasts between the beginning of Ice and the beginning of this fic, I laugh at myself. I guess you learn and improve everyday! New chapter to be put up soon, I hope! Please read and Review!!!!!!  
  
Kage3 


	2. Chapter 2

A/n: Ok, the second chapter. You guys gotta let me know how I'm doing, cause if I think it sucks, it may not last long. So fire up the reviewing engines!! I need constructive criticism. Tell me if you don't like something. Tell me if you DO like something!  
  
Disclaimer: Storyline is mine. No one sue me!  
  
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Tifa felt weird sitting across from the man that she had been fighting against for the past few years. Not necessarily scared, just nervous. She didn't know what to say to him. And he didn't exactly start conversations. "So... can I call you Rufus? Or do you still go by 'President Rufus'?" She asked with a tinge of sarcasm.  
  
Rufus on the other hand, wasn't amused. "I don't care what you call me." He said with an icy air. He looked her over when she was busy ordering their drinks. She looked even better than when he last talked to her in Junon.  
  
She had cut her hair to a manageable length to signify that she had finally let go of Cloud. Her fiery crimson eyes still sparkled, but they seemed a bit dimmed by depression. Tifa looked back at him. "Hey, how did you recover so quickly if you 'shattered nearly every bone in your body'?" She asked.  
  
"Like I said, a hell of a lot of mako. It's got a kind of healing ability. Not to mention the best healing team on the Planet. And a few friends to get me through the depression." Rufus answered, whisking a few strands of hair out of his face with a trademark flip. "So, how's your boyfriend Strife doing?"  
  
Tifa blushed and narrowed her eyes. "He's not my boyfriend. He's on some kind of quest to find ... himself. Why do you care?"  
  
Rufus put up his hands as if defending himself. "Calm down, Lockheart. Why are you getting so defensive? I just asked a mere question. Nothing more. Trying to start up conversation. Is it a tender subject or something?"  
  
She stared at him, an angered look on her face. "No."  
  
He intelligently decided to let that matter slide. "All right, then."  
  
An awkward silence followed.  
  
"Here are your drinks, sir, madam." A smiling waiter cheerfully placed their orders in front of them.  
  
Rufus glanced off to the side with an uninterested air. "Thanks."  
  
Tifa smiled cheerfully and sipped hers. "Mm, thanks!" As the waiter walked away, she looked at Rufus with a raised eyebrow. "Rufus, why are you so... cold? I mean, you're here, helping people for God's sake, building a new city to make up for some old mistakes, and you still act like you have a stick up your ass. Why don't you try being... Oh I don't know, maybe kinder?"  
  
Looking at her, bewildered at first, then busting out laughing, Rufus placed a hand over his face. "I've never had anyone talk to me about my attitude like that. Especially the part about a 'stick up my ass'. Normally people are too afraid to say things like that. Sometimes, you amaze me, Lockheart." In more ways than one... He thought.  
  
She grinned at him. "Well, maybe it's time you started seeing yourself through other people's eyes."  
  
He rolled his eyes. "I don't want to kill myself."  
  
She chuckled. "No, I mean try to find your true self. I know that beneath that quiet, cold exterior and mako infused body is a heart, beating, somewhere. You just have to find it."  
  
He smirked at her. "Am I paying for this mental therapy session?" God, her eyes can see right through me.  
  
Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. "I'm serious. Show the people that Rufus ShinRa is a changed man not only outwardly in the things he does, but also in the way he feels. Obviously you've changed if you are helping people instead of hurting them. But come on, there's gotta be some love in there. Maybe some compassion."  
  
Rufus took a sip from his drink. "Tifa, there are few people I could really say I've loved. In fact, I can really only think of ... one. And that was my mother. And it was too many years ago to remember. I've lusted after few women, but never really been with anyone." This is more than lust.  
  
She blinked. He just called me Tifa. Just a moment ago, he was calling me Lockheart. And is that ... warmness in his voice? She couldn't help but chuckle. "And what kind of women do you 'lust' after? And have you ever been in a relationship with a woman?"  
  
Damn. She caught me. "I've never been in a relationship with a woman. They're too complicated for my taste. I've had my eye on one or two in my life though." He laughed. "In fact, this is the first time I've ever been out with a woman."  
  
Tifa's jaw dropped. Some interesting things were flying through her mind, and one random one just popped out. "So you mean to tell me a handsome guy like you has never had sex before?" WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! Why did I just say that? She wanted to slap herself.  
  
Quiet for a moment, and taking in her extremely open question, he couldn't help but blush, exterior breaking down before Tifa's eyes. "Uh. No. I've never been with a woman that I wanted to." He looked away with a bit of embarrassment.  
  
She covered her mouth. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ask you that. If it makes you feel any better, I haven't either. I've been in love with one man who didn't love me for too long. So I let that silly notion go. So I'm looking for someone who'll love me back, hopefully." She couldn't believe the information she was giving to the man in front of her.  
  
"I see. Well it shouldn't be long before that happens. You're very beautiful." He said with complete confidence. Evil tendencies were starting to plague his mind again.  
  
"Uh, gee thanks. Oh, hey, I gotta go. I saw an opening for a barmaid in the newspaper and I wanted to just work for a while before I open my own again. I'm glad I got to know you a bit better, Rufus. And I'm glad you've made a change for the better. Just work on the icy attitude, and you got it made!" She flashed her sweetest smile before standing and turning to leave.  
  
I have to see her again. "Hey, Tifa. Come by the headquarters tomorrow about the same time. I'll set you up an appointment." He nearly demanded.  
  
Weird. What could he still need to talk about? "Uh, ok. See you then." She found it funny that to really lighten the mood, she had to insult him. Maybe that's all he needs. A harsh dose of reality. He's still as handsome as I remember him from that night on the balcony. He got right in my face... but he smelled so good... Her mind wandered as she walked out of the café.  
  
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The next day, Tifa sat in the waiting room, wondering what he wanted to talk about.  
  
A secretary smiled sweetly at her and told her she could go in and see him.  
  
His office was relatively smaller than his old one, and, ironically, it was on the bottom floor. It wasn't nearly as expensive looking, either. It just looked like an ordinary office.  
  
"Ah, you made it. I wanted to ask you something. A sort of... favor, I guess." He looked up from his paperwork. Again, he sported no gel in his hair, and it still fell into his eyes.  
  
Suddenly wishing she had back up, Tifa looked around the room. What could he possibly need? "Yes?"  
  
"I thought about what you said yesterday, about changing my attitude. I was wondering, do you think you could help me? I realize that it would be better for my reputation. Maybe you can teach me to be..." He struggled with the word. "Kinder."  
  
She chuckled with relief. "Well, that will be no easy task. At least you've conquered the first step. And that's realizing you have a problem. But if you've had this attitude ingrained in you since you were a kid, then I have my work cut out for me. So sure. I'll help you." Wow. He really has changed. Who would have thought? Rufus ShinRa, a good guy? "So, how do you want to go about this? You want me to come over everyday and teach you to be nice or what?"  
  
He smirked at her. "No, I want you to stay in the HQ with me, every moment. Correct me when I'm wrong or being 'cold'." He knew that she'd have a bit of trouble with this, but this was the only way he could satiate his need of her healthily. "I know you have a job, but if you quit it, I'll pay you double. For a week."  
  
Tifa's mouth gaped. "Stay here with you all week? Are you serious?"  
  
He grinned, knowing exactly what to say. "Are you afraid, Lockheart?"  
  
So he'd gone back to using her last name. "Not a chance. You don't scare me." She looked at him indignantly. "But if you try anything funny, mister, and I'll castrate you with a dull spoon." She didn't completely trust him yet.  
  
Her threat made him laugh. "Ouch. Fine. Gather your things for a week and bring them back here. It's going to be an interesting week."  
  
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A/n: Whahahahaha! I am so evil. Yes, short chapter, but it is an interesting one, no? I'm just writing as I go along, I'm not sure what I have planned for this yet. Owwie, Tifa's not very nice, is she? Poor Ruffie. Anyway, please review!!! 


	3. Chapter 3

A/n: Ok, starting another chapter. I hope this turns out okay, cause I'm just writing as I go along! Enjoy, Read and Review!!

Disclaimer: Don't sue me, the story is mine.

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Day One.

Tifa stared out the window that overlooked the city. "You know, I can't believe that you've done a 180 and become a good guy. And all that you've done to give homes to the people who were in the Meteor accident is impressive too. You think you need ME to get a good reputation?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He merely looked over his paperwork. "I don't know how to be ...nice to people to their faces. I'm afraid I may say something I don't mean. I need..."

She grinned and finished for him. "Manners?"

"If you must put it that way, then yes. But I was just going to say 'guidance'." He looked at her with an expression she'd never seen on his face before. "Lockheart, what's it like to be free?"

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" She asked, confused.

"Nothing. Forget I said anything."

Tifa got the impression that Rufus needed to get out a little more. "Hey, I got an idea. Let's take a field test! You're going outside. You need a little sun, you're kinda pale." She grabbed his hand and started to pull him to the doors.

"Wait Lockheart! I can't go outside. I'm not presentable." He resisted her strong tugs.

She looked at him and burst out laughing. "You're kidding right? You're dressed better than I am, you'll be fine." She gave him a once over. He was wearing white khaki pants and a black turtleneck, one that clung to his muscles. She was wearing a tight tank-vest and skirt with her combat boots, just in case of a surprise attack.

"But... I have paperwork, and ..."

"Shut up, you're coming with me! You can finish it later!" She pulled with all her strength and finally budged him from the room.

Beaten, Rufus followed her, shaking his head.

"Lesson number one, don't call anyone by their last name unless it's preceded with Mr., Ms., Mrs., or if it's a nickname." She said, still pulling him out of the building. "Therefore, don't call me Lockheart."

"Sorry, 'Ms. Lockheart'." Rufus said sarcastically.

"Second, lose the sarcasm. And call me Tifa. I don't like formal titles. It makes me feel old." Finally out of the building, she dragged him down the street and let go.

He couldn't help but chuckle. He'd never met a woman so strong, or so strong in spirit. She was the only one he'd allow to speak to him that way.

"What are you laughing at?" She stopped in front of a playground that had newly been constructed and was crawling with kids.

Seeing where they'd stopped, he stopped laughing abruptly. "What the hell are we doing here?" Rufus said, staring at the countless children.

She smiled triumphantly. "We are going to revisit your childhood and work from there. Do remember ever having fun and 'playing'?"

"Yes. If you count training since you were six 'fun'. No, I've never played on a playground." He grimaced.

"Uh. You never had a playmate?" She queried carefully.

"Dammit Loc... I mean Tifa, I told you, I've never had sex!" He said, blushing a deep red.

Tifa stared at him for a minute before nearly rolling on the ground with laughter. "No... no... I meant someone... to play with when you were young!" She managed to say between giggles.

Even more embarrassed that she was laughing at him, he flushed a deeper red. "Quiet, you're making a scene. No, but I did train with Sephiroth." He said, surprised when she suddenly stopped laughing.

"Sephiroth..." She said evilly.

"Tifa, what are we doing here?" Rufus asked her impatiently.

Shaking from the thought, Tifa brightened. "We're going to play. On the playground. With the children."

"You're kidding, right?" He stared at her with wide eyes. He wasn't exactly a "kid" kind of person; he'd never been around any to really know.

"Nope. You are going to experience 'fun' today." She then proceeded to drag Rufus into the playground.

"But, I KNOW what fun is." He said almost angrily.

She stopped and turned. "Ok, what is 'fun' for you, Rufus? What do you do that is 'fun'?"

He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came to mind. He groped for something reminiscent of fun. "I... Sometimes throw daggers at a target!" He seemed happy with himself.

She laughed in his face. "No, that's just out of boredom. Fun is laughing while you're doing it."

"Well, I sometimes laugh when I put Heidegger or Scarlet's picture on the target." He smiled evilly.

She rolled her eyes at him. "Let's go."

Rufus stared at the children.

They stared back at him. "Hey, aren't you Rufus ShinRa? You look a lot like him. I though he died..." A little girl shyly said,

"Yes, I am Rufus ShinRa. I am the president of the electric company." He said, not really knowing how to address these kids.

"My mom told me about you. She said that you were a mean... uh... 'tyrant', whatever that is." One little boy courageously said from the monkey bars.

"Eh. Well..." Rufus began to explain.

"But she also said that you made a complete turnaround when you started rebuilding the city. She told me that she knew you were still alive because daddy is one of the builders that are helping you. Thank you, Mr. ShinRa... My house was smooshed in the Meteor accident. And you helped build a new one for us. You're nice!" The little boy grabbed Rufus' leg and hugged it.

Refusing to gag from the whole cuteness of it all, Rufus, not knowing what to do, patted the boy's head.

A small girl toddled over to him and lifted her arms to be picked up. "Hol' me peas."

Tifa giggled at the adorable scene. And at Rufus' confusion in what to do. She watched him pick up the little girl and soon, he was almost covered in children thanking him for building their houses.

Rufus started laughing, but it was a different kind of laugh that Tifa had never heard from him before. It was a warm laugh. Not his usual "Heh heh." Now it was more like, "Ha ha". He kneeled to the children's level and was soon giving piggyback rides.

Tifa smiled warmly. She knew there was some caring being deep beneath the tough, stoic exterior. "Hmm, he'd make a good dad." She muttered to herself. She suddenly remembered the tiny crush she'd had when she first saw his picture in the Midgar Star. She was only sixteen at the time, and still smitten with Cloud, but for a while she kept an eye on Rufus in the news and papers. She remembered Aerith quoting a paper when he showed up after Sephiroth killed his father. "They say no one has ever seen him bleed or cry." Yes, Tifa had added her own two cents. "I wonder what kind of person he is?" And, ok, she had to admit the she was just as worried about Rufus as she was Cloud when they had their little scuffle on the roof. "Where's Rufus?"

Now, his trying to get a better reputation made him seem all the more like a potential love interest. He was very good looking, clever, well dressed, had money AND was trying to be a better person? How many men would she find like him? Absolutely none. Rufus ShinRa was one of a kind, a chance in a lifetime.

On the other hand, there was still a bit of mystery about him, something she didn't quite understand. She had to get rid of his frosty exterior and try to get inside his head, see what made him tick. Only a few ways to do that, and one was to get him very angry, another was to see what turned him on. She decided she'd try to get him angry first, see what kind of temper he had and how long he could hold it.

"I think they like me..." Rufus broke her thoughts by whispering in her ear. He had seen the way she looked at him. She hadn't even been paying attention when he had broken free from the children's playful hugs and snuck around behind her.

Startled, Tifa smacked him on the shoulder. "Don't do that! Yes, they like you. And you obviously had no problem with them. Children must be a weak point for you, and you don't know it. Hey, I got a question for you. What really annoys you?"

He thought for a moment. "Hm. How about meaningless questions like that? Tifa, it is actually very difficult to annoy me. The only thing I _really_ despise is that stupid horse-laugh that Heidegger does. But other than that, I'm hard to aggravate." He resisted hard the urge to tell her that children were _not_ his weakness, but she'd know he'd be lying. Their innocence was all that Rufus could even remember from his own childhood. And deep down, he really couldn't resist their big eyes. But _no one_ was ever going to know.

"I'm sure there is something else. Heh, who knows, I might find out the hard way, eh?" She smiled sweetly.

Just knowing that she was going to try to piss him off made him laugh. "Ok. Is that a challenge?"

She nodded, sweet smile never leaving her face.

Back at the office, Tifa plopped herself down on the comfortable chair behind Rufus' desk, propping her feet up in true relaxed nature. She looked for his disapproving glare, but it never came. "Well, you passed that field test pretty well, Ruffie." She searched his face again, but still nothing.

He merely chuckled. "Ruffie? So now you are referring to me as a tranquilizer drug? Hm. What is _your_ demeaning nickname? I've had a few. I remember one especially from an executive training facility when I was 17. They called me 'Ruthless Rufus'. Very appealing, yes? What about you?" He said with no malice whatsoever.

She grimaced at her lack of impact and her memory of one nickname that haunted her. One that Cloud himself had given her. "Actually, I do have _one._ 'Ticklish Tifa.' It's kind of embarrassing. You see, before Cloud joined SOLDIER, we would spar. And he'd cheat by tickling me." She turned red.

Rufus laughed at her. "_You_ are ticklish?"

She pouted. "Not anymore!" She lied unconvincingly. "I bet you are ticklish too!" She tried being cute.

He quirked an eyebrow. "Me? Ticklish? Ha. I was trained out of that years ago." That was a lie. He was ticklish in one area that he knew of, and that was his neck. If anyone so much as breathed upon the back of his neck, he'd cringe in an attempt not to laugh. He looked at her with a slight bit of mischief in his eyes. "So, Tifa. Where are _you_ ticklish?" He tried to ask innocently.

Knowing what he was thinking, she insolently smiled and shook her head. "Hah, as if I'd let _that_ little weakness out to _you_ of all people, Mr. ShinRa." He certainly had lightened up since going to see the children. He wasn't being the Rufus she knew at all if it weren't for the smart-ass remarks.

"Please. Call me Rufus. Hell, call me Ruffie if you wish." He even bowed sarcastically. "I wonder, Tifa, why the real reason you agreed to this deal. Obviously you are making an impact. I've never talked so openly with a person. Only a couple of days with you and you've made a difference. How are you so calm around me when you were so afraid of me before?" He asked, walking nearer to her.

The look in his pale blue eyes gave her goose bumps. But not the scary kind. It was a look she'd never seen before from him. Like he was revealing his soul to her. She knew that look though. And most of the time, it was a ploy to bed her. She knew too well men's inventive ways to seduce women, and pretending to open up was one of the top five. Being a bar hostess, she'd learned the bad side of masculinity. "Because, Rufus ShinRa, I've gotten to know you a bit better, and I know a few of your weaknesses, even if you don't admit to them." She peered back at him, eyes watching his every move, readying to defend herself from him lest he try to force himself on her.

He smiled as he sensed her tense up, even though she spoke with utmost confidence. He stopped merely inches from her, and looked right down into her brown eyes, smelling her fear. The Rufus ShinRa from the past came back for a moment as he tasted the apprehension in Tifa. The old slogan, 'fear is power' resonated in his head. He felt her heartbeat quicken in the stillness between them. "It appears, Tifa, that I know a few of your weaknesses too, whether you admit to them or not." He lowered his head to hers; lips so near that he could feel her quickened blood pumping through her sumptuous skin. God, he wanted her. And it would be so completely simple. But it was not time.

She had not even realized she'd closed her eyes. He was so close to kissing her; she could feel his warm breath on her lips. She opened her eyes. And he was gone. He had left the room. She looked around, heat from his closeness slowly melting away. She flushed, cursing herself for letting him get as near to her as she did. She had let him dominate the moment, intimidate her. But his close proximity made her feel wanted, something she hadn't felt in a long while. Tifa shook her head, knowing that was the weakness he had mentioned.

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A/n: Wow, it's been awhile. I've been very busy; I can't even imagine how it's going to be when I actually start college. passes out I'm working two jobs, so it's not easy for me to sit down without having a brain fart. I HATE those... Anywhoo, it shouldn't be long before I have another chapter up. At least, not as long as it took for this one. Please read and review!!


	4. Chapter 4

A/n: Ah yes, another chapter. I'm still writing this as I go along, so bear with me, please. As always, I ask you to read and review!!

Disclaimer: My story, Square's characters. 'Nuff sed.

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Rufus lay on his back on his bed, contemplating his latest bold move. It had taken a lot of gumption to do what he'd done. Any man with the feelings he had for her would have taken that moment and ran with it, probably taking it as far as it would go. Heaven knows she was willing. She was waiting for him to sweep her off her feet. Maybe now she'd show a little more respect for him.

"Yeah, right." He thought, and sat up from his bed, not surprised to see her leaning against his doorframe. "Yes, Tifa?" He said slowly, not even looking at her.

"You know, you may think you have me figured out, but you are only a small way into my realm of thinking. You think you know me when in fact, I already know your little plot." She said, smile slowly creeping to her lips.

"You think you're teasing me, when you are really just teasing yourself. Rufus, you don't need manners, you were raised with the utmost courtesy to society, with a small side of finishing school, I might add. The only evil part was the company's practices. You've never been out rightly unkind, unless it was your co-workers. Sure, you are a bastard sometimes with your sarcasm, but it's mainly out of wit for the moment. So, Rufus ShinRa, why am I here? I think I know why. You have an interest in me. And with the way you have acted the whole time I've been here, I think you lied through your teeth when you told me you'd never been with a woman." Her speech made, Tifa stood up straight with her arms folded. "I'm not stupid."

Never even flinching, Rufus stood up also. "I never once said you were. But you're wrong. I've never been with a woman. I swear. Don't think you have me figured out just yet. Now if you'll excuse me," he said, removing his shirt and beater, showing his lean but muscled figure. "I need to change and get ready for bed. Are you just going to stand there and watch me?"

Feeling a flush rising to her cheeks, she refused to lower her eyes in embarrassment. "You act like I've never seen a man's chest before. Do you think I'm impressed?"

It was as if she blinked and he appeared right in front of her, he moved so fast. He lowered his head and put his forehead to hers, glaring into her red wine eyes. "Tifa, stop acting like I'm trying to seduce you. You are only fooling yourself. I could have kissed you earlier, you were extremely willing, but I didn't want to. I think it is _you_ who is teasing yourself." He slowly backed away from her, eyes never leaving hers. The warmth from his bare chest cooled as he moved away.

Only slightly hurt, Tifa managed to grin back at him. "Then why, may I ask, did you even get that close to me then and just now? If you weren't trying to 'tease' me, then there would be no reason for you to come within an inch of my face." She said, her eyes never leaving _his_. "I'm sure you don't go anywhere near as close to other people like that, especially when you're angry."

Not expecting her to reply so quickly, he stopped to think of something to say. "I'm not angry. In fact, I'm surprised at your continual trust in your instincts. It's very rare when people can tell when I'm lying." _My secret is out now. But is she scared of me?_ "Ok, so what if I do want you? What could you possibly do against me? I'm used to getting what I want. You could say I am a bit... spoiled." Rufus managed to pull the door closed. He was sure she was starting to get frightened of him taking advantage of her. But something confused him.

Tifa kept her confident, smug smile. "Sorry Rufus. That would only intimidate me if I were scared of you. But you aren't scary. In fact Ruffie, you're kind of cute. Now if you excuse _me_, I need to get ready for bed myself. Goodnight!" She opened the door, leaving Rufus alone, dazed, and thoroughly confused.

"What the hell just happened?" Any other woman in the world would have either been completely frightened and crying or would have jumped at the chance to get in bed with him, but Tifa Lockheart, the strangest female he'd ever met, _calmly_ _walked out of the room_! Smiling, no less! This was going to be his chance, the final test to see what she truly thought of him. But she'd left him more confused than before! He had no idea what this woman was thinking, and she was the first to ever confuse him like this. Shaking his head, he finished getting ready for bed and lay down. But he couldn't sleep. _Curse that woman. I'm not going to be able to sleep thanks to her._

Tifa on the other hand, happily took her shower and walked out into the large bedroom set up for her. _He thought he had me figured out. Well not this girl._ She walked to the dresser to find some clothes.

"You know, I thought I had you figured out." Rufus said from the doorway.

Tifa squeaked and pulled her towel closer to her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?! I'm trying to get dressed here!"

He walked closer to her, pale silk robe flowing much like the trench coat he wore before ShinRa fell. All he was wearing beneath that was white silk boxers. He had a strange look on his face, like he was confused, but trying to hide it. "Why are you so different, Tifa?" His voice was unusual too; it was much gentler, less harsh in sarcasm.

She was still shocked by the fact that he walked in while she was just in a towel. "What do you mean? Can you ask me this later?" She wasn't afraid, just surprised by his entrance.

He neared her still, almost as close as the last time. He reached out a hand and gently caressed her cheek. When she didn't withdraw, he put his finger under her chin to lift her face toward his. "I've got to know Tifa. What have you done to me? Why do I feel like I have to be gentle around you? It's hard to act around you. I can't put my defense up around you, because even if I do, you find a way to break through it."

_Oh my God, I must have slipped in the shower. I'm dead, and this is Heaven. No way on earth would Rufus ShinRa be this gentle toward anyone. He's too cold. Or have I tapped into something he's never really felt before?_ Dazed, Tifa looked into Rufus' ice blue eyes. "Because Rufus, I think you might have feelings for me." Her senses were tingling. This wasn't like the time he pulled away right as they were about to kiss. This was real, and it felt like her insides were melting with the heat of his bare chest.

"Maybe so. I've never been able to tell a person how I feel so freely, and its as though you draw it out of me. You intrigue me because you are like no woman I've ever talked to. Its as though I can be my true self around you because I can't fool you. And... you are so incredibly beautiful." Rufus shook his head, chuckling. "Damn, do I sound corny."

Tifa grinned. That was the Rufus she knew. For a moment, she really did believe she was dreaming. And she was so lost in the moment; she forgot she was in just a towel. "No, that's what every girl wants to hear. Just, hearing it from you is like... hearing Sephiroth talk about how soft kittens are." She grinned.

Rufus laughed. "Am I that horrible? Wait... don't answer that." With the conversation becoming more real, the reality of their situation grew more apparent. "My, my, Tifa, you don't seem as intimidating without your... fighting gear." He said tenderly, avoiding coming right out and saying that she had _no_ clothes on. He advanced closer toward her slowly, hoping she wouldn't withdraw. His hunger for her was almost unbearable now, especially with her in this circumstance.

Instead of backing up, she leaned into him, absorbing his body heat. She shivered; it was quite cold in her room. "Well, I guess I can't be an intimidating woman all the time." She smiled slyly.

He felt her shiver and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her ever nearer, warming her with a gentle embrace. He lowered his head to hers, barely centimeters between their lips. He couldn't resist the dire need to kiss her, to hold her. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he got up to the nerve to place his lips upon hers, exploring her mouth with his own.

When he finally did kiss her, it felt like a jolt of electricity between them. She'd kissed men before, but never did it feel like this. It was as if time stopped, and it felt so right. A warm feeling grew from inside her chest down into her stomach. She urged him on, gently pulling his head toward her, deepening the kiss. She suddenly felt very stupid for chasing Cloud all those years and wasting her time on some naïve country boy. Rufus was all she wanted, Cloud forgotten in an instant. Tifa slid Rufus' robe off his shoulders; her fingers were aching to explore the muscles in his chest and arms. It was only when Rufus started to undo her towel did she realize that the whole of their relationship was based on three short days. Not wanting him to stop, but knowing they _had_ to stop, she put her hand on his. She looked up at him with a bit of guilt. "Not yet. I don't want you to stop, but it's too soon. Let's not be too hasty with this. We need to really see if this can work." She frowned. "Because... I don't want this to be a 'fling'. Three days is too short to tell if this is love or lust. Please tell me you understand." She put a hand to his face, longing for his kiss again.

Nothing else she could have said would have brought his spirits down like that, but he knew the reason why. She didn't want to be hurt, and if it were him that hurt her, it would be all the worse, knowing she should have trusted her instincts. Rufus sighed, but smiled. "I understand. But I want you to know that I meant everything I said. I've never felt this way about anyone, and I doubt I ever will again. I can be patient, especially for you." He pushed his fingers through her damp hair, shifting it out of her face.

Tifa smiled and stood tall to kiss him again. "Thank you Rufus."

He brought her to him again, giving a gentle embrace and kissing the top of her head. He took in the sweet scent of her hair and instantly memorized it. "You do realize though, I won't be able to sleep tonight, thanks to you." He smirked at her.

She smiled slyly back at him. That was the biting wit she knew. "Well, think of it this way: You wouldn't have slept if I didn't stop you, either." She winked at him playfully and pushed him out the door. "I need my sleep, Rufus ShinRa, now go!"

Needless to say, Tifa did not sleep either. Her mind would not settle. It was racing and all the thoughts were centered on Rufus. When her heavy eyelids finally closed out of sleep deprivation, her alarm clock went off. Tifa groaned pitifully and hit the snooze. "Ten more minutes..."

Rufus drug himself out of bed, dressed, and shuffled to the kitchen for some much needed caffeine. Surprised at not seeing a chipper Tifa, Rufus started to wonder where she was. After finishing his second cup, Rufus began to worry. Tifa was always up, even before Rufus himself. Maybe she was sick? He slowly wandered to the stairs, wondering if he should go up and check on her. _Maybe I should just peek in, make sure she doesn't need anything._

He advanced up the stairs. Coming to the door, he knocked softly. When she didn't answer, he knocked harder, knowing she'd be able to hear it. When she still didn't answer, he opened the door slowly, peered in the door. He didn't see her walking around the room, so he tiptoed inside. "Tifa?" He whispered, just in case she was sleeping still. And still, no answer. Rufus looked toward the bed; sure enough, she was curled into a small ball in the middle of the huge sleeping area. Her long silky tresses were spilling over the pillow and over the edge of the bed. Rufus smiled at her adorable facial expressions when the light from the window hit her eyes.

She scrunched tighter into her secure ball and rolled over, whispering something incoherently in her sleep. Her face relaxed when cool comfortable darkness shadowed her eyelids. Tifa pulled the covers closer to her and smiled at the warmth.

Rufus walked toward her, chuckling quietly to himself. Tifa Lockheart: by day, intimidating kick-ass ex-terrorist, by night, sizzling sexy temptress, and by morning, cute sleeping beauty. Lord, if ever a woman to break down Rufus' defenses, even in sleep, this was the one. He wanted so bad to run his fingers through her hair again, touch her soft skin. Satisfied at knowing her whereabouts, he retreated through the door. He still had much work to do with the city, and needed to get it finished quickly. He didn't want to wake her up now and spoil any sweet dreams she may be seeing.

When Tifa _did_ awake, she looked at the clock. To her surprise, it read twelve thirty. "Oh my God, I slept half the day away. Why didn't he wake me up?" Looking around the room, she realized that her door was opened, just slightly. "He must have peeked in on me. Geez, my day is almost ruined." She suddenly remembered her steamy encounter with the president of ShinRa and blushed profusely. She never felt that way around Cloud, and was sure she never would. Cloud made her feel like a silly schoolgirl. Rufus made her feel like a womanly goddess, in a sexy kind of way.

Tifa swung her feet from the bed. She walked to the door and closed it so she could dress, barely noticing the new item on her nightstand. It was a PHS, and it had a number on it, signed Rufus. She smiled; he was probably out working on the reconstruction of the city. She dressed and picked up the phone, dialing the number in the process.

"Rufus speaking." His voice was monotone; she could tell he was probably working on something.

"What's the idea of letting me sleep the day away, huh? I know you were here. I can still smell your morning after-shave. And why do I have this whole place to myself?"

"Good morning to you too, Miss Tifa. Did you sleep well? By the look of you this morning, it would seem that _you _got even less sleep than _me._ Was there something you were thinking about?" His voice had a sly grin to it. Satisfied with her answerless silence, he gathered that she _had_ been thinking about something. "I guess so. Oh, I've sent Reno to pick you up. He should be arriving..."

On Tifa's end, the doorbell rang. "He's here. Where are we going?" She asked as she opened the door.

"Hey Teef!" Reno started, but was silenced as Tifa awaited Rufus' answer.

The president merely chuckled and said, "You'll see."

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A/n: After a long hiatus, I should be getting more done soon. I've been working! (bows) Sorry! I know some of you are waiting for more on Beauty, Love, Trust, and it IS coming. Its gonna be there, slowly but surely! I don't give up!! Anywhoo, just give me a little time, my computer and the internet are both crap for me right now, and I'm trying to fix it! Someone kill the hacker that implanted this stuff into my poor compie!! (cry) (Sniff) More soon, love ya!

Kage


	5. Chapter 5

A/n: Ok. Sorry people, but this is the third time I am going to start this chapter. Now, before you start throwing rubber duckies at me, let me explain the, what, four month hiatus this has been on? One, my computer, which was hacked and virused, is dead. Two, we got a new computer, but the company forgot to give us a new modem. Ok, starting to get a little peeved, but ok. We get the modem and new internet provider; obviously the AOL gods were not happy when we switched to People PC, which unfortunately only supports one screen name, and since mom pays the bills, I am stuck offline until I can. Or until we can get a "better Internet". Ok, what else could go wrong? I suddenly can't find my beloved purple disk, which houses chapters 1-20 of Ice, 2-4 of BLT, and 1-5 of Ties that Bind. I CRIED. Two days ago, I found my purple disk. I rejoice. But to my dismay and horror, I find that my Ties that Bind chapter 5 is corrupt. It was my second draft, btw, because the _first_ had been corrupted too. So you can see why I just have not been able to post my beloved story. I sniff have been having a bad start to the New Year. I don't even know if any of you are still reading… … 'Poke' Anyone out there? 'crickets chirp' 'Hangs shoulders low' I need a hug.

Disclaimer: I don't feel like saying I don't own FF7. I just want to own SOMETHING that works…;;

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Ties that Bind Us: Chapter 5

Rufus hung up the phone and turned back to his project. Her voice renewed his energy a bit, and he was more geared toward getting it finished before she arrived. "Has the interior been completed yet?" He asked a foreman.

"Not quite, we have a few finishing touches, but all in all, we should conclude in about half an hour." The foreman estimated, looking at his watch.

The young president nodded. "Good. She'll be here soon."

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"Does it look like we're there yet, dammit? Geez, you'd think I'd tell you anyway?" Reno answered Tifa for the sixth time, although he was smiling.

Tifa play-pouted and crossed her arms. "Hmph. And I thought we were friends."

Reno rolled his eyes and started on a new conversation. "Yeah, speaking of friends, when did you and Rufus get so buddy-buddy?"

She merely looked at him and smiled, mind wandering again to the previous night, and again to the way she and Rufus had, well, bumped into each other. "He saved my life, and then hired me as a conduct teacher to help him act less like the guy that he was a year ago."

The redhead thought for a moment. "Saved your life? Oh wait; _you _were the girl he saved from the scaffold accident? See, I only heard about it on the news. They didn't give any details on who was involved, but I did hear from the guys that it was Rufus that saved the girl. But it doesn't surprise me. He's been crushing on you since he saw you on that balcony before the fight with Cloud. And he's not a bad guy, considering the only parent he had was a power hungry madman who didn't care if his son was declared a child prodigy at age four. As long as Rufus was alive, he was happy. He only wanted an heir to carry on ShinRa."

"I know he's not a bad guy. He tried to be, but it just didn't fit him. It's funny. Even though he was supposed to be evil, he wore white. You know? Sephiroth wore black, the color of death, and President ShinRa wore red, the color of blood. Rufus isn't so bad, minus the biting sarcasm and the ability to single-handedly wield a shotgun without landing on his ass." Tifa sighed and leaned against the door, quietly adding, "In fact, I kinda like him."

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"ACHOO!"

"Are you catching cold sir?" A helper asked the young President.

"Don't be stupid. I don't get sick. I've never been sick." That was a lie. There was one time, long ago when he was seven, he had the chicken pox and was miserable. All the itching, the fever, it was a horrible experience. "Ah, well ever since that shot of Mako, I've been healthy ever since." He thought. After admiring the work of the construction workers, Rufus imagined Tifa's expression when she'd see this surprise. He got to thinking about how expressive her face truly was, when his mind wandered to her sullen, brooding expression; the one she had the day of the construction accident. It was a face that reminded him of his own former life. He had seen her walking down the newly paved street, knowing her face from before. Rufus' heart had skipped a beat because he had a slight fascination with this woman. He had seen her for the first time on the balcony at the Midgar HQ, and had gone right up to her first. But this particular time, she looked miserable, unhappy; it just didn't suit her.

Rufus remembered seeing her, just dragging her feet down the road, surprised to see her back in town. He knew that she thought he was dead, and he had chuckled at the thought of following her, tapping her on the shoulder and saying, "Boo."

But his comical thought quickly turned to alarm when he saw a construction worker suddenly jump from a crumbling scaffold. A disturbingly overfilled scaffold. A scaffold that was collapsing above Tifa Lockhart. An old, yet rarely felt emotion quickly spread within him. The same one he felt when his mother was about to die at his father's hand. Fear for another human being. His mind raced on the decision to risk his identity so soon, but reaction took over, and he darted toward her.

Only when a stack of shingles fell in front of her did she look up in fear. Rufus jumped forward just as a paint can fell where he'd just stepped. Pushing her mid-jump, and bracing himself for a world of hurt, he shoved her to the ground, covering her smaller body with his own. His brain screamed at him: _All this for a woman who was one of your worst enemies?_ All he remembered after that was telling her that they'd make it out alive. Other than that, he just remembered a really bad headache.

Snapped from his memory, Rufus heard a car driving up. He grinned. It was worth it.

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Tifa reached out to smack Reno, but blindly swiped at empty air. "Come back, you bozo! I can't walk without seeing where I'm going unless I have a guide! This handkerchief is too thick! You tied it too tight!"

Reno chuckled. "Oh quit whining, I wasn't going to leave you. Quit being a wuss and grab my arm."

Tifa reached out again to grab Reno, and when she found his arm, she breathed a sigh of relief. And then smacked him.

"What was that for!" He whined.

"For calling me a wuss. Now where are we going?"

"If I told you, it wouldn't be a secret, now would it?' He led her forward.

She stepped lightly, careful not to trip. But suddenly, Reno let go. "Hey! I don't know where I'm going, remember?" Another set of hands grasped her waist from behind and led her the rest of the way. She felt lips brush across her ear as a voice she identified as Rufus whispered in her ear.

"Are you ready for your surprise?"

She suddenly got goose-bumps as she nodded.

Rufus gently untied the handkerchief from her head and watched her face.

Tifa looked forward at the newly constructed 7th Heaven, gasped, smiled, and her eyes lit up. Speechless, all she could do was give Rufus a huge hug. She ran inside to check out the interior.

Rufus merely smiled at her reaction. Now that was the optimism that she always surged with. Suddenly, his keen ears overheard two workmen talking about the previous 7th Heaven.

"Man, did you ever go when Tifa was working at the bar? She always knew exactly what kind of drink you order before you said it just by looking at you, even if she didn't know you. And her cooking was awesome. It also kinda helped that she was so good looking." The sandy-haired young man said to his raven-headed companion.

"Yeah. But that makes me wonder; why is Mr. ShinRa rebuilding 7th Heaven? I mean, did he actually visit the place before it was destroyed? How does he even know Ms. Lockhart?"

Rufus chuckled to himself. He would admit, yes his interest in Tifa would look a bit strange to the outside public. Or his interest in rebuilding a tiny bar that had been tucked away in a slummy Sector 7. But he didn't care what the public thought anymore, most of them still didn't quite trust him, and he couldn't blame them. He glared at the two. "Are you two finished gossiping? Because there is still work to be done."

The workmen shrank back a bit, afraid of their commanding chief, mainly because they knew of the ShinRa family's supposed cruelty. But they nodded and rushed off to the next construction site.

Reno shook his head and laughed. "You know Ruf, I figure people wouldn't act like that if you were a bit nicer."

"If I was nice, no work would get done. I'm nice to you, now look what happened." Rufus muttered, only teasing his friend. "I'll be back; I'm going to check on Tifa. You make sure these men keep working."

Reno playfully saluted and started to bark orders.

Inside, Tifa was rushing around gushing over how everything looked just like it was before the accident. "Only cleaner…" She added. She only stopped for a moment to acknowledge Rufus' entrance and resumed her inspection.

"I take it you like the surprise?" He said, leaning against the doorway, hands in his pockets.

Tifa's huge smile was testament to her true feelings, but she voiced them anyway. "Oh my god Rufus, this was the last thing I was expecting. You know, usually a guy just gets a bracelet or a necklace, and to me that is so clichéd. You truly are a unique man."

He smirked one of his old ShinRa smirks and raised an eyebrow. "So then I suppose you won't like the second half of my surprise?" Out of his pocket he pulled a white gold necklace with a diamond heart charm. "Funny, I had a slight sense that you would enjoy a nice piece of jewelry…" He slowly started to put it back in his pocket.

Her eyes widened again. "No no no no! I'll accept it!" She rushed to him and grabbed his hand. And for the first time ever, Tifa heard Rufus' hearty laugh.

"You're so charming when you're surprised, you know that?" He reached around her neck to clasp the necklace for her and then ran his fingers through the loose hair around her face.

Tifa, engrossed in her gift, smiled happily and sighed. "You sure turned this day around. Thank you, Rufus, it's beautiful."

He smiled and kissed the top of her head. "What is, the bar or the necklace?"

She just looked up at him and smiled, enveloping him in a hug. "All of it. So, when is the grand opening?"

He shrugged. "Not anytime soon, because you still have to put in whatever decorative items you want. I think that we'll do the grand opening the day after we christen the new city. Sort of like a new beginning for Midgar. And then we'll have the grand re-opening of 7th Heaven. Sound good?"

Tifa nodded. "Sounds great." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed Rufus' lips.

"Did I just see that right? Since when did AVALANCHE and ShinRa start having make-out sessions?" A familiar voice ruined the moment.

"Reno, I thought I told you to keep an eye on the men?" Rufus glared at Reno from the corner of his eye. He stepped back from Tifa.

Reno grinned. "Well, Rude stepped in, and being as quiet as he is, no one knows when he'll go psycho, so they all do what he says. I daresay, they're almost as scared of him as they are of you! So, I guess I'm interrupting, but I had to come tell you about a certain mode of transportation arriving." He winked at Rufus.

Tifa was confused, but didn't say so.

"Oh. That was quick Reno. Thank you." Rufus smiled.

Reno's jaw dropped as he looked from Rufus to Tifa. "Did I just hear Rufus ShinRa say 'thank you'? Wow Teef, it's only been four days, and you already have him on your leash. You're amazing!"

Another pride-hurt glare from Rufus shut Reno up, if only for a moment. The trio walked outside to see a helicopter waiting for them.

Tifa stared at the helicopter. "What's going on? Who's leaving?"

Rufus smiled. "We are. I decided I needed to take a vacation. And since you agreed to stay with me for the week, you are coming along. We are going to Costa del Sol, for a week. Do you think you could extend your stay with me for a few days?" He asked her, already knowing her answer.

Tifa's day could not possibly get any better. First her bar, then the necklace, now this unexpected trip to a sunny resort for just the two of them. She truly felt wanted, no man had ever showered her with gifts like this, and the thought of it all coming from her former enemy made her head swim. She had to sit down for a moment to let it all sink in.

"Are you all right, Tifa?" Rufus didn't know what to do; she surprised him by nearly passing out on one of the deck chairs on the porch of the bar.

"I… I'm fine. This is just all happening in one day." Her eyes had not un-widened since she heard the news of the trip. "I'm really, really happy… I don't think I could get any happier."

Rufus, glad to hear it, picked her up gently, not knowing if she could walk in her dazed state, and carried her to the helicopter. "Are you sure you're ok?"

Tifa started laughing. "Oh my God, I'm going on an actual vacation!" She nearly yelled.

Her overexcitement made Rufus chuckled. "You've never had a vacation before?"

As the helicopter took off, Tifa clutched Rufus' arm. "No, and I've never been on a helicopter before."

Rufus put his arm around Tifa for her added security and nuzzled her ear with his lips. "Then I am going to make this one vacation you will never forget."

Those all too familiar chills rushed down her spine and gave her goose-bumps. Never in her life had anyone treated her like this. And she enjoyed every minute of it. Nothing could be better than this. She felt like a princess in a fairytale, and Rufus was her knight in shining armor. Never again would she think of Cloud. She'd probably never see him again, so he was not worth thinking about. This next week was going to be all about having fun. And getting to know Rufus better. A lot better.

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A/n: Wow, this turned out a bit differently than I planned, but it still works. I have a bit of humor here and there, which I'm not very good at. And before some of you get mad at me for changing Rufus' personality, keep in mind that it hasn't changed, with the exception of Tifa. He's still a bit of a meanie to everyone else though. Don't worry, you'll see a bit more of his personality in the next chapter, I promise. 'Evil laugh' Anyway, like I said, I know that I probably lost a lot of readers from not updating soon enough, but I've fell on some hard luck and hopefully that will change. I will NOT surrender! Please read and review! Thanks guys… For all of you still reading this and having faith in me, 'teary eyes' you guys are awesome. Love you all!

Kage3


	6. Chapter 6

A/n: H'lo, I'm back and I'm trying to get in as much writing time as I can. This fic is soon to turn more… adventurous. I'm going to try a few things and see if I can bear to have them seen by other people. Let me know how that works, ok? Please read and review!

Disclaimer: My story, not my characters.

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"Ok, now that we've settled in here a bit, I propose that we have a question and answer session, no mercy, no holds barred. What do you say? I'll answer any of your questions honestly, and you do the same. Sound good?" Rufus glanced at Tifa, who had sat down on the leather couch in the living area. He sat down across from her on a matching chair.

"Sounds all right to me. I've been meaning to ask you some questions anyway." She looked around the room. It was extremely large, like a penthouse apartment, and Tifa immediately noticed that Rufus had done a gentlemanly thing and requested a two bedroom suite. That impressed her, now knowing that none of his father's personality had crept into Rufus' blood. "You go first though."

"All right. I'll start with a tough one. What really went on between you and Strife before all of this started?" He knew this would be unpleasant for her to answer, but he also knew that she would tell him if she truly trusted him. He glanced at her and leaned forward in his chair.

Taken a bit aback, but knowing that this was coming sooner or later, she nodded. "Fair question. Well, where do I begin? Let's see, we grew up together in Nibleheim, kinda part of different groups. See, he was smaller than the other little boys, so he had more to prove. But I still liked him all the same. Then we got to be teenagers, and I could feel something strong inside me, pulling me toward him. He was really the only boy that I could talk with normally. I could get him to talk to me without flirting with him. But then, he told me to meet him by the well, and when I did, he told me he was going to Midgar to try and become a part of SOLDIER. I made him make a promise to me, that when he became famous, and that if I were ever in trouble, he'd come rescue me. Heh, now that I think about it, you fulfilled that promise, not him." She smiled at Rufus weakly.

"Anyway, I didn't see him for a few years, and then, he just showed up one day, needing money, so he joined AVALANCHE. It was like he didn't remember a thing about our childhood. I was a bit crushed, but I was patient. And then he fell into Aerith's lap, in a way. She was bubbly, cute, fragile, flirty, girly, everything I wasn't. So Cloud felt the need to protect her. And he did. Then they had their stupid little date at Golden Saucer. I was jealous, I had loved him for so long, waiting for the feeling to be returned, and then she came along and made him fall for her in no time. I admit, it made me feel bad about myself. I felt like there was something wrong with me, I wasn't feminine enough, I wasn't fragile enough. Don't get me wrong, Aerith and I were very good friends, and I was as depressed as the next person when she died. But I couldn't help but feel a guilt-ridden tinge of delight that I had Cloud to myself again." She sighed, signaling that the story didn't have a happy ending.

"Well, needless to say, he still didn't have that interest in me, and even when I stayed with him when he had Mako poisoning, he didn't see me romantically. I managed to act like nothing was wrong throughout the whole mission to kill Sephiroth. And finally when Sephiroth been beaten, Cloud told me that he 'knew she was still there'. I was blown away. Aerith was and still is dead. And yet, he'd travel around the globe trying to find her again. That was when I knew it was the end of it. Do you hear that Cloud? I GIVE UP!" She yelled, Rufus her witness to her pledge. Her eyes watered, but she did not cry. She had cried enough over Cloud Strife.

Rufus sat there for a moment, speechless at her story. She had just spilled her darkest secret, one she'd never shared with anyone. "Wow. You, Tifa Lockhart, thought you weren't good enough? You've always given off an air of utmost confidence." He stood up and sat next to her, knowing she needed a shoulder right about now.

"Well, Rufus, you aren't the only person in the world capable of wearing a mask and a brick wall over your heart." She leaned on him.

"Touché. But I hope you realize that you are too good for Strife." He stroked her hair.

"Oh? How so?" She asked, lazily.

"Well, one, you aren't girly, you are womanly. Definitely a better thing. You aren't flirty; you know how to give an intelligent conversation. You aren't cute, you are beautiful. You aren't bubbly; you are optimistic, even in dire situations. And last but not least, you aren't fragile, you are an extremely strong fighter with a punch to be deathly frightened of. Strife must have been nuts for choosing that flower girl over you." He finished. Normally, saying all that would be embarrassing for him, but it was like she drew the emotion out of him. Plus, she was kind of half-asleep.

Tifa yawned, head still on his chest. "Thanks Rufus. You're sweet." And with those words, she fell asleep on him. She was exhausted from the helicopter ride; she was shaking the whole time she was on it. She was out like a light.

"Hm. I'm sweet? That's new." He continued stroking her hair. After about five minutes, and after being totally convinced that she was in a deep sleep, he tenderly picked her up and carried her to her room. He carefully pulled back the comforter and sheets and tucked her in. Quietly, he turned off the light as he left the room and closed the door. Rufus shook his head. If Tifa had been any other girl, he would have left her there on the couch. He didn't know what she was doing to him. Where had his biting sarcasm gone? Well, it wasn't like he needed it around her that often. He shrugged and shook his head as he closed his own door.

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The next morning, when Rufus awoke to a sound (he was sleeping on his belly), his eyes still shut, he grabbed the sawed-off next under his bed and in one fluid movement, pointed it at the source of the sound. He jumped when he saw that it was pointed at Tifa's forehead.

Never even flinching, she took a bite of her orange slices. "You know, you could hurt someone doing that." She was sitting on the bed next to him.

Still half-asleep, Rufus sat up in bed and set the gun back down. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and ran his fingers through his tangled blonde hair. "What are you doing in here? I could have shot you." He muttered almost incoherently as he looked as his clock. "It's seven o'clock in the morning. Are you daft? We're on vacation." He lay back down and pulled a pillow over his face.

"Ooh, we resort to name-calling Mr. ShinRa? Very mature of you. I always wake up at six thirty, my body is trained to wake up early, and I was bored, so I came to see if you were awake. And you just looked so cute, sleeping there on your stomach, I couldn't walk away. Besides, you watched _me_ sleep." She popped another slice in her mouth.

Muffled through the pillow, Rufus spoke tiredly, "Yes, for five minutes. And then I left you to let you _sleep_ for four more hours. Please, thirty more minutes?"

Tifa rolled her eyes. "Fine, I guess I'll go swimsuit shopping on my own…" She stood up to walk away, but he caught her wrist.

He pulled her back onto the bed and against him. "You think I'd pass up the chance to see you model swimsuits? You _are_ daft." Rufus grabbed her around the waist, not about to let her get up.

"Hey, did you carry me into my room last night?" She asked, hoping he was still awake.

"No, you sleep walked. All the way back to your room and turned off your light and closed your door in the process." He was sarcastic even when he was about to fall asleep.

"Ha, ha. You know, this is against my better judgment." She said, indicating that they were in the same bed.

"Yes, but what you've failed to realize is that if all I wanted to do was use your body for my pleasure, I wouldn't be this nice to you. And I definitely wouldn't have requested two bedrooms for our stay. You of all people already know I'm 'spoiled' and 'impatient', and would have tried to get what I wanted back in the first couple of days. You would be long gone right now, and I'd still be in Midgar. I already told you that you're different. How much more proof do you need?" He yawned.

She shrugged against him. "I dunno, I guess it's still hard to believe. Right? Rufus?" When he didn't answer her, she knew he'd fallen back to sleep. But just lying there next to him, wrapped up in his arms, it made her feel secure. And with that thought, she too fell back to sleep.

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When she awoke again, Rufus was gone. She sat up and looked around, and when she didn't see him in the room, she walked out into the living area. "Rufus?"

"In here." His voice floated from the dining room. When she had joined him, he looked up from his coffee and toast. "I got hungry." He said, as if explaining himself. Rufus hadn't bothered to get dressed yet, so he was still walking around in his silk boxers.

Tifa nodded and sat down across from him, admiring his bare chest. She wondered when he had time out of his busy schedule to keep such a toned body, but she also remembered that the old ShinRa HQ had a whole _floor_ dedicated to weight training and exercise.

"So, what were you planning on doing today?" He pretended to forget what she had said earlier.

Tifa looked at him and half-grinned. "You heard me the first time. I haven't gone swimming in a long time, and I want to get a new bathing suit. Do you want to come along or not?"

Rufus pretended to think about it, and then nodded. "Yes, I think I can take time out of my demanding agenda to help you pick out your bathing suit."

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"Why the hell did I agree to do this?" He thought as he watched her model another sexy suit. It was like torture, he'd _never_ felt this way watching a woman. His evil tendencies started to rack his brain, and his mind wandered back to the night she was in just a towel. Now, she was trying on even less than that. And finally when she came out in that white bikini, the one that hugged her curvy, toned body like a second skin, he couldn't take anymore. "I like that one." He managed to squeak out.

Tifa checked herself in the mirror, turned around and, much to Rufus' relief, said, "Yeah, I like this one too."

When the article of clothing had been bought, Rufus gave a sigh of relief.

Tifa laughed at him. "Geez, what was that for? It's just a swimsuit. Relax." She laughed again. "We haven't even gone swimming yet."

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When they actually did go out and have a good time, Tifa surprised Rufus and asked him about his opinion on things, and gave him hugs without warning. And the little affection shows didn't annoy him like he thought they would. In fact, he hugged her back once, and it didn't kill him! But he did notice a certain feeling she put into those squeezes, and it was like she wanted someone to protect her, even if she could defend herself just as well as he could.

Rufus had come to a realization that day. Of all the women that he'd ever met or seen, Tifa was the one woman, no, _person_ that made him feel needed. He even felt compassion, which Rufus had never felt before, for her sake. She didn't have to act like a temptress to get his attention. All she had to do was say his name. But he didn't _dare_ say he was in love.

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Two days later, late at night, Tifa couldn't sleep. Something was keeping her up. Shaking her head, she got out of bed, put on a robe, and walked around for awhile. She padded into the kitchen for a cup of cool water. Finished, she had the sudden urge to walk outside. Wondering what was plaguing her sleeping habits, she sighed and sat down under the porch light. She looked at her watch; it was two in the morning. "God, what is wrong with me tonight?"

A good fifteen minutes went by before she gave up and stood to walk back into the room, but someone walking along the beach caught her eye. Tifa squinted her eyes, and then widened them. Whoever it was, they bore an extremely close resemblance to Cloud Strife. _No one_ could mistake that hair. But what would he be doing here? Tifa wondered if she should wake Rufus, but decided against it. It would only cause animosity between everyone involved, and that was the last thing she wanted to do. She grabbed some flip-flops and a flashlight and jogged toward the beach to find out who the figure really was.

When she neared the person, Tifa called out into the darkness, "Cloud?"

The other person whipped around. "Who's there?"

Tifa shined her flashlight on her own face. "It's me, Tifa. Is that you, Cloud?"

"Tifa! What are you doing here? Not that I'm complaining. The others said they haven't heard from you in almost three weeks." Cloud's familiar voice said above the noise of the waves.

"What am _I_ doing here? What are _you_ doing here on a beach at two-thirty in the morning?" Tifa said, almost laughing. She shined the light back at him and nearly fell over at what she saw.

He had lost a lot of weight; his cheeks were taut across his face. He clearly had not been eating very well, and judging by the purple bags under his eyes, hadn't been sleeping very well either. Even his once bright Mako eyes had dimmed. He had a sort of ashamed look on his face, like he knew she was disappointed at his physical appearance, and answered her question. "I… I couldn't find her Tifa. She's really gone for good. Aerith is… dead. I can't bring her back." His frustration slowly started to turn into tears, and Tifa had never seen Cloud cry.

And this was one of the two ways Cloud made her feel. Like either a mother or a flighty schoolgirl. Her heart suddenly reached out for him, and she offered her outstretched arms for a comforting hug. "Come on, I'll get you something to eat, ok?"

He nodded and looked at her with his gaunt eyes. "Thanks Tifa. But I owe you an apology for not keeping in touch. I should have at least let you know what I was doing. But I was so into it, really confident. You were always there for me. And I just left you behind. I'm really sorry, Tifa."

"Shh, don't worry about it now; we need to get you fed." She led him back to the apartment, praying that Rufus wouldn't wake up.

Seeing where Tifa was lodging, Cloud's eyes stared, incredulous. "How on earth are you staying in a place like this?"

Tifa put a finger to her lips. "Shh! Here, just eat. It's a long story, and I don't feel like telling it right now." She set a plate of turkey drumsticks and mashed potatoes in front of him, and he asked no more questions as he voraciously scarfed down the whole thing. "Of all the places to end up, how did you end up here?" She asked, watching in near disgust at his ravenous appetite.

Cloud stopped for a moment to swallow a large mouthful and took a swig of water. "Well, I'm not quite sure. I ran out of money a long time ago, and I've just been roaming for the past month. I stowed away on a boat, living on a bit of the crew's lunches. When I got off the boat yesterday, I stayed with the guy Yuffie used to work for back then. And so, here I am."

Tifa raised an eyebrow and suddenly wondered how the glorious hero she remembered him to be had so quickly turned into an undernourished vagabond. When he had finished, she gave him seconds, which he also quickly finished off. She wondered how she was going to pull this off; knowing Rufus and Cloud were mortal enemies. Biting her lip, she decided to let Cloud take her bed. "Hey, Cloud why don't you clean up, take a shower, and take the bedroom on the right. Ok? I'll… We'll figure this out in the morning."

He promptly followed her command, not asking questions. As soon as she was assured he was in bed, Tifa sighed. "Hoo, boy. This is going to be a tough one." She quietly padded into Rufus' room and climbed into the bed beside him, still praying he wouldn't wake up.

Unfortunately, fate hated Tifa. Rufus stirred at the movement on the bed and glanced up through the dimness of the room. "Tifa? Well this is a pleasant surprise." He said sleepily, and wrapped an arm around her waist.

She smiled and yawned. "Don't get any ideas, Mr. ShinRa. I just got a bit scared and I figured you'd protect me. My threat still stands if you try anything funny."

Rufus, too tired to really remember the dull-spoon comment anyway, merely yawned, nodded, and fell back to sleep.

Tifa knew she should think of something before the morning came, but sleep in Rufus' arms was a much more appealing idea. It was already three, and sleep was starting to sound more and more tempting. Her eyelids, after feeling a ton each, finally eased themselves shut, forcing Tifa to wander into dreamland.

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A/n: Wow, I actually finished this a week after the last chapter was posted. Unfortunately for me (and I knew this was going to happen) in that week, I only got ONE review. (Thank you sooo much, Tifa-sama!) OK, I deserve that. But I AM trying. Thank you for only throwing one rubber duckie at me. For all that are still reading this fic, please review. Let me know you are still out there! Thanks you guys. More soon!

Kage3


	7. Chapter 7

A/n: Hullo again! Still trying to turn these chapters out. I'm not sure how long I'm actually going to make this fic, and at first I wasn't intending to make it long. But it looks like it turned out that way… Anywhoo, on with the chapter. BTW, if you can't tell which blonde is the one in the first paragraph; good. You aren't supposed to. Ha-ha!

Disclaimer: Dood. I own nothing. Nothing but the storyline. I am sooo poor.

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The sun from the window shined hard on his eyelids. Daylight forcing him to wake up, he sat up groggily. He ran his hand through his blonde bed-head hair. He looked at the clock which read 9:00, and he didn't feel like lying back down. He stood up and walked from the room, eager to see Tifa's happy face. He walked around the apartment, but didn't see her anywhere. Shrugging, and thinking that since she was up so late the night before, she might still be in bed. So, he went to find her resting figure. But upon opening the door, he got the shock of his life. Tifa was sleeping, tight and warm, in the arms of another blonde man; to be exact, his mortal enemy.

And then, Rufus ShinRa woke up. In a dead sweat, he tried to push the nightmare out of his head. Why would Tifa go back to that idiot that treated her like a groupie? It wasn't logical. He tried to calm himself down, and looked to his side. Tifa wasn't there. Rufus recalled her climbing into bed with him the night before for solace. Still trying to settle himself down, he remembered that Tifa always awoke early. He looked at the clock, and it made him anxious that the time read 9:00. Finally getting over the dream, he laughed at himself. "What the hell am I getting so emotional for? It wouldn't be logical for Strife to be here, let alone sleeping with Tifa. So there is no need for my anxiety." Still chuckling to himself, he climbed out of bed and put on a robe. He smelled bacon cooking, along with the scent of pancakes. He followed the aroma into the dining room and ended up getting another shock.

Cloud Strife, sitting at _Rufus'_ table, eating _Rufus'_ food, stared back at Rufus himself, almost as stunned as the young president.

"What the hell is going on here?" Both blondes raised their voices, still looking at each other, then both at Tifa, who was red-face and looking as guilty as could be.

"Uh, well, see… Um, I don't know who to explain to first…" She began.

Rufus piped up first. "I think you owe it to me first, seeing as how you've recently been with _me_." He said, looking for Strife's reaction.

Cloud on the other hand shook his head. "You don't owe this scum anything Tifa. Why the hell are you in the same apartment with him? Wait, 'recently been with me'… What's that supposed to mean?" Cloud's country boy brain was trying to process the situation, but he couldn't seem to take in the possibility that Tifa could be dating Rufus.

"Okayokayokay… Look, Rufus, I found Cloud wandering around the beach last night, and he was hungry and had no place to sleep, so he stayed in my room…"

Rufus cut her off for a moment. "Is that why you decided to climb in bed with me?"

Cloud made the next comment. "WHAT?"

Tifa shook her head. "No, wait…"

Cloud's face was in shock. "Is this what you've been doing for the past few weeks? Is that why you haven't contacted any of our friends? Or is he keeping you from…"

"I'm not keeping her from anything Strife; she's here on her own will."

"Yeah, well I wouldn't put anything past you, ShinRa, you slimy bas…"

"EVERYONE SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Tifa's eyes squeezed shut, yelling at the top of her lungs.

Both men silenced, in awe at her powerful voice, not to mention, choice of words.

"Look, do you want me to explain, or not?" She stared both of them down, and neither one made a peep. "Now look, Rufus, as I was saying, Cloud is obviously starving, so I let him eat and sleep here." She looked at Cloud. "Ok. Cloud, you are going to believe everything I tell you?"

He reluctantly nodded.

"Good. A few weeks ago, Rufus saved my life." Tifa stared evilly at Cloud when he made a snorting noise, and he quickly quieted down. "As I was saying, I was actually thinking about some very important things that day, and I wasn't paying attention. I was almost smashed to death by a scaffold. But Rufus saved me. And since the whole Sephiroth thing, he's done a total change. He's rebuilding Midgar. And he's rebuilding it better, so there won't be slums, and there won't be a huge gap between classes. Rufus has even been doing construction himself on people's houses. He's changed." She finished, and looked at both of them.

Cloud, silent for a moment, suddenly found his voice. "And this explains why you're with him… how?"

Tifa grunted at Cloud in a way he'd never imagined a woman should ever grunt. "Look, if you can't accept it, don't worry about it. I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself. Don't start the big brother bit now, Cloud…"

Rufus had the sneaking suspicion that he should remove himself from the room, and away from Tifa's suddenly volatile anger; a side of her he'd never seen before. But even though she looked like she was going to rip Cloud limb from limb, Rufus kinda liked her domineering, controlling side. Most women he'd seen were more demure, quiet, and never tried to preach to him what he should or shouldn't think or do. And now, seeing Tifa tear into Cloud, and to his delight, Cloud's deer-in-the-headlight look, made her all the more intriguing.

Cloud, overwhelmed, put his arms over his head. "Okay! Chill! If you've been with him this long without him taking advantage of you, then I have nothing else to say at this moment." And Cloud was silent about the matter. For fifteen seconds. "…But why _ShinRa_ of all people! Why couldn't you have picked someone that _wasn't_ from the company that tried to kill the Planet?"

Tifa could no longer hold her anger at Cloud's rejection of her happiness. "AHHH!" She let out a war cry as she dove at her childhood friend. "You are _such_ an **_idiot_**! Why can't you just let me be happy Cloud? Why!"

Rufus, torn between instinct to pull Tifa off of Cloud and the good sense to stay put and let her handle her own demons, still stood, watching the amusing scene. He already knew what kind of pain she was feeling right now, and he already knew that she was holding back tears. It would seem that Cloud was like a stepping stone that had fallen beneath her many times.

Cloud on the other hand, was speechless at Tifa's sudden attack. And at what she had said. He grabbed her wrists, but he couldn't hold down her volley of punches at his chest. So he stood there till she got tired, weak from pounding the hell out of his upper body. This didn't take long, considering she didn't sleep very well the night before. He already knew that there were going to be many large dark bruises the size of her fists on his torso by lunchtime; Tifa was no softie when it came to punching someone.

She slowly broke down and a single tear crept its way down her cheek. She stared hard at her once 'secret' love. "You couldn't let me stay happy. You had to come back, question my bliss and treat me like I'm a defenseless idiot!"

Cloud shook his head. "You aren't a defenseless idiot. What do you mean; I can't let you stay happy? I thought you _were_ happy when you were with us. You were always the most happy, optimistic person in our group. What could you possibly be depressed about? As far as I knew, you told me everything."

Rufus finally decided to step in at this moment. "Strife, let her alone for a minute. You're hurting her. She needs to take a time out, and so do you. You obviously don't understand what's bothering her, and you're not making it any better by making her feel guilty." He said gently, trying not to start a battle between himself and Cloud.

Cloud opened his mouth to retort, but thought about Rufus' statement and wisely shut it.

Rufus went to the fridge and poured Tifa and Cloud glasses of iced tea, and then poured himself one. "This is going to be a touchy subject for the both of you, and I want it to be as painless as possible for her. Tifa, I think you should go outside on the porch and think about how you are going to clarify what you need to explain to Strife. Alright?"

Tifa nodded her head morosely. She couldn't believe how understanding and helpful Rufus was being about the whole thing. And it was amazing that he'd stayed quiet when she was trying to explain everything to both men. Cloud on the other hand, couldn't keep his comments to himself. Tifa knew that what she had to say was going to be hard, but had she not gotten to know Rufus better, what she had to say would have been all the more difficult. She smiled through her anger and unhappiness. "Thanks Rufus." And while he didn't return the smile, she knew that he was smiling at her with his eyes, making her feel all the more confident. She walked outside, sighing away her stress.

Cloud couldn't understand why Rufus was being so caring about the whole situation. He was confused, but some small part of him couldn't help but feel that this side of Rufus was the one the Tifa was falling for. A tinge of jealousy bit at him. _Why Rufus of all people? He kidnapped Aerith. No wait; that was the old President. Ok, well, he dropped the plate on Sector 7. No, that was the old President too. And more directly, Reno. _Cloud was trying to find something that Rufus did directly that was bad, but was having trouble. _I know, Junon! He tried to kill Barrett and Tifa. And he's so damn rude. Stupid ShinRa kid thinks he knows everything. _He looked at Rufus, who was looking back at him with the same Mako-fused eyes, and was still finding it hard to find a soft spot for him. But just because Tifa liked him didn't mean he had to.

Rufus smirked at Cloud. "Can I help you, Strife? You're eyeing me like a wolf eyes at a rack of lamb. We might not have gotten along before, but our goals in life are different now, and are not opposing purposes."

Cloud still stared at Rufus. "You're no lamb, ShinRa. And I don't know what you did to pull the wool over Tifa's eyes, but its not going to work on me."

Rufus rolled his eyes and drew his eyebrows into a scowl. "I see Tifa was right in saying that you don't think highly of her. You seem to think that she's not smart enough to see through a plot against her. That's not true. She's extremely intelligent, and definitely more so than you. Because if you were smart, you'd see exactly what is bothering her. She knows exactly what is going on around her at all times. She is the only person that can call my bluff, and tell when I'm lying."

Cloud quirked a brow. "So you admit that you've lied to her?"

"Strife, I am admitting that I am human. And so are you. You can't tell me that you have never lied to her." He glanced at the ex-SOLDIER. "You also don't keep promises, from what I've heard. For example, there was a promise made many years ago, that a certain SOLDIER would come to a certain young woman's rescue, had she ever need saving. As I recall, Tifa was in many life-threatening situations in which you failed to free her, she did it herself. Whereas, to a certain Ancient, you made every effort possible to save her fragile life."

Hurt, Cloud straightened and tried to save his pride. "She's capable of taking care of herself. Aerith was different. She was a flower girl from the slums; she didn't know how to take care of herself! Even so, I failed to save her life."

Rufus looked thoughtful. "Right. Well, Sephiroth was a strong foe at the time, you probable had no real chance to save her at that time anyway, so don't get all hard on yourself now. But did you ever stop to think that if Tifa ever got into a scrape that was just a _little_ more than she could handle, what would happen if she died, knowing you never saved her life like you promised? Would you feel as bad as you did about the Ancient dying, knowing you knew Tifa for almost all your life and the flower girl for only about a month?"

Angered, Cloud rebelled. "Her name was **_Aerith_** dammit! As for Tifa… I… I…" He couldn't say anything. He hated to say it, but Rufus was right. He would _never_ forgive himself if Tifa got hurt, especially if he had a chance to save her, but didn't.

Rufus having made his point, nodded at Cloud. "Strife, I know you don't like me, and believe me, I'm not fond of you either, but maybe, for Tifa's sake, we can learn to at least tolerate each other. Maybe even spar sometime…" He shrugged and walked out of the apartment to see how Tifa was doing.

Tifa, just finishing her tea, looked at Rufus. "I heard just about everything. You know, you are really long winded." She started to poke him.

Quirking an eyebrow, he jumped as she poked his ribs. "Excuse me, why are you poking me?"

Intent, and totally serious looking, she replied, "I'm looking for your speech button. I want to turn it off… Hey!" She giggled. "You have an outie belly button!" She poked his tummy.

Perturbed, Rufus slapped at her hands. "Hey, no one knows that but you and me. You tell anyone, I'll kill you." He raised his eyebrows. "Well you seem to be in a better mood."

"I heard you defending me, and making Cloud see a few things. I appreciate that. You know, I'm starting to think you have a knack for being a pretty good guy. Now if you just learn to be nice to people…"

Rufus smirked. "Let's not overdo it just yet. I think Cloud is ready for you to talk to him now. He's calmed down considerably, and so have you, so it's probably best if you tell him now. But use small words; he's having problems processing things today."

Tifa smacked him. "Don't be mean." She shook her head and smiled. She sighed again, ready to set everything straight, so Cloud wouldn't be confused anymore, and so that she'd never have to think about this situation again. She walked inside, confident again.

Cloud sat at the dining room table and looked up at Tifa. "Look, Tifa, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad about yourself. I…"

Tifa quieted him. "No, I have just been a little on edge about some things in the past few months, especially when you went off to find Aerith. You see, I'm a little embarrassed to say this, but Cloud, up till about a week after you left, I was head over heels for you. I hung on your every word, and I really thought you were the perfect guy. But I also knew we were friends, and I didn't want to just come out and say something to you, and you disagree and then we'd be weird around each other…" She was rushing, so her sentences were running a bit long and together, so she tried to slow down.

She took a breath and started again. "But then Aerith came along, and you were so engrossed in her. I was jealous. I thought, so a girl has to be fragile, and always getting into trouble to get your attention? I started doubting myself around everyone, and I was depressed. Cloud, I'd had a crush on you from the day you left, and it seemed like I was just one of the guys to you. I don't know why, but it seemed like I just wasn't good enough. Don't get me wrong, I loved Aerith like a sister, but I was jealous of her. You have no idea what it did to me when you announced you were leaving to find Aerith. I didn't care what happened to me after that. You'd promised you'd save me, and it never happened, because you were always too busy saving her. And one day, I was so absorbed in feeling sorry for myself, I wasn't paying attention to a dangerous area, and I nearly died." She looked at Cloud.

He looked hurt, mad at himself for letting this go on unattended to.

"But when Rufus came along, after we got over our differences, we got along, and he made me feel better about myself. I felt wanted again. Cloud, I know you thought you were protecting me when you said Rufus was ShinRa scum, but you don't really know him. If there is one thing I know I can handle, it's this. Just don't yell at me and tell me to leave the one person who lifted me from my slump, even if it is one of our ex-enemies, k?"

Cloud frowned. "Tifa, I had no idea you felt that way. I… I really am sorry about the way I made you feel. Um, and if Rufus, of all people, is the person who makes you feel good about yourself, then by all means, keep it up." He smiled at her, one of those smiles from a time before all the sadness they'd both known. "Just don't come cryin' to if he ends up hurting you."

"Don't worry, she won't. She's safe with me, don't lose sleep over it." Rufus cut in.

"Well, I have a lot to think about. I'm not giving my blessing, but I understand, for now... I just don't know how to tell the others. And Rufus, I might just take you up on that sparring offer. Anyway, I'm going to mosey. Take care, and watch your back." Cloud smirked, but there was a bit of warning in that joking smile. He picked up his stuff, mainly his sword and his duffle bag, and a lunch bag, made by Tifa, and headed out the door after giving his old friend a hug and Rufus a forewarning glance.

Rufus shook his head. "Hm. I'm glad he took that well, but something worries me. I don't know what yet, but the feeling is still there. Oh well, old suspicions die hard." He pulled Tifa to him. "Now, back to our vacation." He murmured, gently kissing her temple.

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A/n: Whew! Well, this one turned out to be a bit longer of a chapter than I thought. I got kinda rushed in the end, but please don't think my writing is getting bad or something. It's just that it's already almost midnight and I wanted to finish and I have to wake up at 6:30 tomorrow… Anywhoo, like I always say, please read and review, please let me know how you think this is going, I love criticism! Oh and special note to Tifa-Sama, thanks for your constant input! I would put a smilie face, but unfortunately those get deleted! But in your last review, you noted that you couldn't tell which characters were talking at what time, I'd like to point out that each single paragraph, no matter how long nor who else is mentioned in it, is devoted to one character. No two characters speak in the same paragraph. I'm not trying to sound mean, like I said, (insert smilie) I guess that sometimes it might be hard to see that in some paragraphs, and I will try hard to clarify next time, k? Thanks again for your review, and please keep it up! I'm glad someone has the guts to tell me something they don't like in a nice way. Oh, and I'll try to slow down and be more detailed. You can only learn from your mistakes and get better! Love you guys!

Kage


	8. Chapter 8

A/n: Okay, here's another chapter. This fic is having weird problems. I mean, so many things are happening to it. I don't know how many times that the files have corrupted! And this is a new computer! I dunno, maybe it just isn't meant to be…

Disclaimer: Square owns the characters. The story idea is _all_ mine.

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Pulled away at a last minute, mandatory meeting about the Corel Reactor, Rufus was hesitant to leave Tifa on her own in the apartment. Not that he didn't trust her. Okay, so the fact that she was a part of AVALANCHE, and the fact that Cloud had left so quietly, he was a bit apprehensive about letting her snoop around. Tifa seemed the curious type. _Ah well, there isn't much to hide anymore, is there? _He'd have to deal with it later; it was time for him to leave.

Tifa was out at the pool, soaking up some sun. She was stretched out on a floating recliner, probably falling asleep. She jumped when Rufus called her name.

"Tifa, I'm heading out. I'll be back late tonight most likely, so don't wait up. Ok?"

She nodded from the pool. "All right. I guess I just have to order out for one tonight, huh?" She waved to Rufus and watched him walk from the yard and out to his waiting helicopter. Bored, she got out of the pool and dried herself. "Hmm... I wonder if Rufus has any skeletons in his closet." Knowing herself to be quite nosy when left alone, she kept herself to the living room, occasionally casting glances toward Rufus' bedroom. Tifa shook her head. "Damn, it shouldn't be this hard not to snoop through his things! AVALANCHE sure has changed some things about me…"

After about an hour, Tifa's self control wore extremely thin. "Maybe just a peek? He won't know. We'll just see if Mr. ShinRa has been keeping his business clean…" She slowly inched toward his room, mainly because the innocent side of Tifa was clinging to the couch. _This is the smart thing to do, Tifa! _She told herself. "Besides, if I _do_ find something bad about him, I can report everything to Cloud and the others."

Armed with her final decision, she stepped lightly into Rufus' room like it was booby-trapped. She made her way to his suitcase, in which most of his clothes were located but toward the bottom, she spotted a shiny metallic object. She dug it out of the mass of white clothing, (Rufus wore a lot of white), and found it to be a framed photograph. There were two children in the photo, both boys. One was slightly younger than the other, but from far away, they could be twins. The older boy had his elbow propped on the younger's shoulder, smiling wide. Both were blonde, one of them _had_ to be Rufus. Upon further inspection, she realized that the younger one was the child version of the President. There was no mistaking the shape of his face and those eyes. The older child was the one who threw her off.

He must have been around three years old, Rufus about two, and he looked extremely familiar. His soulful blue eyes, that huge goofy grin. Why was he so familiar? Slowly, a face formed in her mind. An older face with those aquamarine eyes and country-boy goofy grin. _Cloud! But how could the two be connected that young?_ She racked her brain for some sort of reason that Rufus would have a picture of Cloud and himself as young children. The answer eluded her.

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Cornered, Rufus mustered his strength to deal with the battle in front of him. They were trying to gang up on him, but he was not about to back down. He grimaced and concentrated on his plan of combat. With one final sigh of irritation, he stood up and drew back his recent weapon of choice: His pen.

"Listen, I am _not_ going to compromise on this decision, and we are _not_ going to activate the local reactor, even if we are a bit lacking in the resources! Do you understand me? As soon as possible, I want to have that thing dismantled and the scraps are to be distributed as building materials for other projects. That is damn good metal, and I will not have it rusting with lack of use from its prior evil. Is that clear?"

Rufus' speech button had gotten switched on during the verbal scuffle between the task force attending the meeting. Meanwhile, then men had stopped in awe to listen to their leader's perfect articulation and implementation of large words.

But one lone officer didn't seem to understand that Rufus's word was final. "But sir, we won't be able to complete the solar panels in time to account for the energy the surrounding cities need. And that's not including the Gold Saucer. The energy saved up from the last Mako-draw is almost depleted. In a matter of days the area will be completely dark and powerless. All we would draw is about a month worth of Mako. That way we could finish the solar panels and switch with a bit of energy to spare. Then we could dismantle it. It looks like our only option." His smug face made it clear to Rufus that this was a prior employee of ShinRa that was higher up at one time, maybe around his father's last days, one who thought the age of Mako would last forever.

Letting another sigh of irritation pass through his lips, Rufus narrowed his eyes at the shameless employee. The whole room, minus Rufus and the employee, held their breath. "You're fired. Get out of my office." He stated calmly. Ah the benefits of Presidency and the ability to fire someone for whatever reason one wants.

The employee's smug grin slid off his face. "What? You can't fire me! I just stated a fact and opinion! Someday you'll learn not to throw your childish tantrums, daddy's not here anymore to give you whatever the hell you want!" The subordinate's comment did little to damage Rufus' ego.

The boss shook his head, but continued with all composure. "Clearly you did not hear me. I said 'get out'. Now I suggest you do so before I decide to call in security to escort you out. You are no longer an employee of ShinRa and if you aren't careful, then you'll find it awfully hard to find a job anywhere else. I advise you leave gracefully." He stared at the now embarrassed subordinate, who silently picked up his things and stomped from the room. "Does anyone else have an 'opinion'?" Rufus asked the remainder of the men sitting at the table.

Every one of them shook their heads profusely.

"Good. Now what I want are the facts and some good suggestions. Does anyone have any of those?" Somewhat relaxed from the public humiliation of a lower subject, Rufus sat back in his chair. He heard the rustling of papers, murmurs and the occasional 'um', but no audible answer to his question. _Just great. This is going to be a long night._

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Tifa wanted to call Cloud and ask him if he knew anything about the photo, but decided against it. There were a few reasons that she wouldn't, and the fact that Cloud had problems getting his past straight in the first place was a major reason that she'd leave out asking him about his involvement in the ShinRa family, related or no.

On the other hand, she couldn't ask Rufus because then she would have to reveal that she'd been through his things. Her brows furrowed with concentration. _You know, it would have been easier if he _was_ still running an evil company. Now my curiosity is going to annoy the crap out of me. Okay, I'm 98 positive that this is Cloud. What could be their connection?_ She thought about it, and the more she did, the more she realized small instances in which they acted awfully alike. They both were painfully stubborn at times. No wait, scratch that, _all_ the time. They both were lead figures. It was hard to tell them apart in the morning, thanks to their dangerously similar eyes and hair.

She found it awfully coincidental that the only two men she'd ever been romantically linked to, and who she thought were bitter, mortal enemies, were linked to each other in some odd way.

Giving up on trying to guess the answer, she moved onto looking into other things. For example, underneath Rufus' mattress. _Men always hide interesting things underneath their mattresses._ When she didn't find anything, she looked in the closet. Nothing looked out of the ordinary. Tifa looked through every pocket of every piece of clothing Rufus brought along on the trip. Nothing. It would _seem_ that Rufus ShinRa had nothing to hide, or he was just very good at hiding things. Satisfied with tonight's search, she put everything back to where it originated. Next time he left, she'd try and get the briefcase.

Hungry, she ordered food for one and settled down on the couch, focusing on Rufus. Tifa wondered about the photo, which reminded her of family, and slowly, her mind wandered to the thought of what kind of father Rufus would turn out to be. Obviously a stern one, Rufus would be a father with no qualms about ignoring a pouting face and sending a misbehaving child to their room. But on the other hand, Tifa could see Rufus being a dad who was especially forgiving to his daughter. The way Rufus had looked with all those kids was heartwarming. And so out of obvious character. Maybe it was because Rufus lacked a childhood of his own. Rufus would make a great dad. And being a good dad contributes to being a good husband. Tifa was slipping further and further into a dangerous fantasy.

She imagined that she and Rufus were in a more intimate situation, where there was no past misgivings to give them a second thought. In this risky day-dream, Tifa imagined being out by the pool in her bathing suit. Soon Rufus entered the dream dressed in his silk boxers and sat beside her on the pool recliner.

"Good afternoon, beautiful." His lips barely grazed her upper arm, and it gave her goose bumps.

She responded with a smirk. She admired his blue eyes that seemed to reach her very core. "Good afternoon yourself. You're still in your boxers." Tifa watched Rufus grin and run his fingertips over her outer thigh. He seemed to know exactly where to caress her.

"I don't see you complaining."

"Oh, I'm not, trust me." Tifa grinned and grabbed his hand. "Stop, that tickles."

He chuckled. And in the art of a true gentleman, he pulled her small hand to his lips and lightly kissed it, never letting his eyes off of hers. "What tickles? You're talking in your sleep, Tifa."

Tifa slowly awoke from her dream and was staring face to face with the real Rufus. And she knew he wasn't about to let her live this down from the look on his smug face.

"My dear Tifa, were you fantasizing about me?" He feigned a shocked look.

Tifa yanked her hand from Rufus. "No. I was dreaming about the puppy I used to have when I was twelve."

Rufus chuckled. "And this puppy wore boxers?"

Tifa's face flushed. "How long were you sitting there!"

"Long enough to know that you were fantasizing about me." Rufus smirked

Tifa's glare wasn't enough to shut him up.

"Are you going to let me kiss you or do I have to force you to like me?"

Tifa laughed. "You can't force someone to like you Rufus."

"Oh, can't I? I'll bet my bank account that you want me so bad right now, you can hardly contain yourself." He ran his fingertips lightly down her arm.

"Is that so?" Her goose-bumps returned. The real thing felt so much better.

"Yes. Only problem is, I've wanted you since I first laid eyes on you. Not just because you're beautiful, but because you're strong. Any woman that can pick a fight with me and almost win is a keeper in my book." Rufus sat next to her on the couch.

"'_Almost'_! I don't think so, Rufus. You're beat there." Tifa sat up straight. Smelling his spicy aftershave made her even more drawn to him.

"Alright, you win sometimes. And exactly why are you still in your bathing suit?" He asked quietly as he brought a hand to her cheek, running his fingers through her silky brown hair, caressing her neck.

"'Cause I feel like it." Tifa officially felt like jelly at that point. Inside, she was screaming, '_MORE_!' but her damned logically thinking brain was on a different wavelength. "Stop trying to seduce me Rufus…" She whispered.

Rufus smiled, he knew she wanted the attention, she reacted positively to every touch and caress he handed out to her. He was amazed, though, that her stubborn brain was still on a chaste warpath. "Who says that I'm '_trying_'?" He knew that she was about to crack.

Tifa's bodily impulses were fighting a rabid war against her logic. She wanted so bad to attack him and claim him as her own, but there were still questions, so many questions.

Rufus leaned his head in close to hers. "I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to do. Just say the word, and I'll stop."

_Oh god, his lips. No, Tifa, he's teasing you. Just like all the times before._ But her body seemed to have a mind of its own. "Please… Rufus."

Rufus was patient. "Please what?"

Tifa pulled in close to Rufus and wrapped her hands around the back of his head, fingers feeling his soft blonde hair. She put her forehead to his and took a breath. "I just don't want to get hurt Rufus. I always end up losing the person I care the most for." Tears welled up in her eyes as she gazed into his.

Rufus smiled again and kissed away the tears that rolled over her cheeks. "I think you need to go to bed now. I'll leave you to fantasize a bit more."

Tifa held him down. "No, please don't leave. Can you hold me for a little longer?"

Rufus nodded in compliance. He wasn't about to complain about holding her.

Tifa sat in his lap and curled up against his chest, listening to his heartbeat while he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her forehead. Tifa undid Rufus' top two shirt buttons and lightly drew circles on his bare skin with her fingertip. She felt like she was in the safest place in the world.

Rufus tingled a bit from that physical touch. Tifa never touched him that way. She might occasionally give him a friendly hug, or a quick slight kiss, but never had she just randomly started doing to him what he always did to her. He watched her fiddle with the other buttons on his shirt and when it was a little more than half open, she slid her arm in and wrapped it around to his back. This flesh on flesh contact made his heartbeat quicken, and even more so when she slid her fingertips up and down his sensitive skin.

Tifa's own heartbeat quickened when she heard Rufus' pick up. Was he responding to her little caresses? She inwardly giggled to herself. So was this the way he felt when he was teasing her? She grinned and kissed his neck, letting her tongue touch down for a moment on the soft, vulnerable skin on his neck.

Rufus' grip around Tifa tightened, and she smiled as she pulled one final tease. She nibbled on his earlobe, and gently used her lips to play with the ultra-sensitive skin. Never had Tifa felt so in control of Rufus. She could sense that he was losing himself in the little touches and teases. She straddled his legs and faced him, resting her arms on his shoulders. Tifa gazed into his piercing blue eyes and put her forehead against his.

Rufus sat helpless to her sudden urge to tease him. He certainly was not used to Tifa's more sexually confident side, and he wasn't sure what to do, considering her short emotional breakdown. Should he let her do as she pleased? Or should he do what his whole aching body was telling him to do?

She knew that he was hesitant because of her tiny fit earlier. So she took a sort of initiative to show him that it was all right. One without words. And now this was in _her_ hands. Her face was in his, instead of vice versa as usual. Tifa rather enjoyed having Rufus at her command. It was so unlike his usual cocky self. Taking on a Rufus-like smirk, Tifa touched her lips lightly to his and softly caressed them with a finger. She ran that hand through his silky hair.

Rufus let her do anything she wanted. But God, he felt as if his chest was going to burst if she didn't kiss him. However, he kept his scarcely-used patience and was able to keep most of his composure. Sure, she was giving him goose-bumps. No one had ever given him this type of euphoria, and he felt as though she was _trying_ to make him mad with passion. He wasn't even sure that he was even going to get anything out of this, but so far, just seeing her passionately confident side was enough for him. But still, if she would just quit teasing about that kiss!

Finally, as if reading his thoughts, Tifa grinned and pressed her tender lips to his. Once again that jolt, that electric shock, pushed them passionately closer, but this time it was on Tifa's lead, and much, much softer. She took his bottom lip into her mouth and affectionately sucked and mischievously nibbled with her teeth.

This new type of kiss mystified him. How could something so slow and soft make him feel so hot inside? He knew his own type of kiss, somewhat rougher, was just as much as a turn on, but this new sensation gave him shivers. Her tongue roaming ever so slightly, slowly across his own was almost too much. Rufus' animalistic urges were trying to take over. His body was reacting to her every touch, and it was driving him insane. His hands took on a personality all their own and caressed her thighs to her buttocks and pulled her warm body closer to his. Tifa's body arched at his touch as his fingers stroked the bare skin on her back, pleading her to go on. Not able to take it anymore, he picked her up effortlessly without breaking the kiss; she wrapped her legs around his waist for stability as he walked toward her bedroom.

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A/n: Whahaha! A cliffhanger! And at a sex scene! LOL, all right, all right, the reason I stopped here was to ask my readers for their opinion. Should I continue this naughty scene in detail? After all, I didn't rate this 'R' for nothing! Or, shall I retain my innocence and leave this scene for the dirty minds out there? You decide! After all, I have no qualms about doing a bit more Rufus and Tifa bedroom detail. It's already a bit detailed. Please quickly review so I know what to write! Oh, and a big thank you out to my recent reviewers. Yes, I know it takes me forever to post, but I can always rely on you guys to cheer me on! Thank you for everything! I love you for it! Till the next chapter!

Kage3


	9. Chapter 9

A/n: I am in awe at the reviews I received from the previous chapter. I think three or four of you said to do whatever I want. But the rest of you told me to add a lovely lemony scene! Oh, believe me, I'm not complaining, but it certainly surprised me. LOL… Ok, to all you _dirty_ minded people, this chapter is for you. (Thank you for all your support:)) BTW, this is no tacky love scene. There will be character thought throughout, not just mindless animalistic sex. Yay! Yes that's right; this is the chapter in which I try to bring back the innocence of the subject. _Try_ being the key word there.

Disclaimer: If Square knew that I was having Rufus and Tifa make love, they'd probably have a conniption fit. Clearly, I don't own them. But, this generous scene is _purely _mine.

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Every step closer that Rufus took toward the bed was bliss. Feeling Tifa respond as aggressively as she was only made the adrenaline rush a pleasuring turn on. Nearing the bed, Rufus tugged at the mere two knots that held that bikini on her frame. With one hand supporting Tifa's weight, he tried to loosen the double knot with the free hand. He reached the bed before he could undo them, and was getting impatient with himself. "Trying to keep me out of your top, eh?" He managed to breathe out between their passionate kisses.

Tifa blushed and shook her head. "Oh yeah, like I was anticipating you sweeping me off my feet."

Rufus leaned forward, just enough to make Tifa fall backward onto the mattress. Her arms were still wrapped around his neck, so when she fell, her bodyweight made him fall forward, but he caught himself with his arms and hovered right above her face, with a grin on his own. Since Tifa had already unbuttoned his shirt, Rufus easily slid it off and threw it away from the bed. He wondered what made her change her mind, no, what made her suddenly aggressive and pursuing a sexual encounter with him. She had _seemed_ so innocent before.

Tifa reached up at Rufus and pulled him back down to nibble on his lower lip again. She thought it was hilarious that it drove him so crazy. She traced his lean muscles with her fingers, and she stared into his eyes. Tifa blushed at her lack of knowledge in this particular area, but Rufus decided to take the lead for a moment. He personally thought it was adorable that she suddenly lost her nerve to experiment.

His kisses started to wander, trailing from her mouth, slowly south across her cheek and jaw line, then down her sensitive neck, slowing down when he reached her upper chest. He traced the bathing suit top's shape with the tip of his finger, then boldly hooked that finger under the only piece of fabric covering her beautiful upper body and pulled it back. Rufus wasted no time in using her natural pleasure reflexes, and as he caressed the soft sensitive skin of her exposed breast, her back arched slightly and he darted for that pesky knot behind her. Once he got it untied, he lifted the top over her head and gently removed it from her body, exposing her soft, perfectly rounded breasts. Getting back to his prior action, he started to kiss and caress at the same time, making Tifa feel a pleasure she'd never felt before.

To Tifa, this was no-man's land. Every man that had ever laid eyes on her would have given their right hand to be able to see and touch her voluptuous chest, and some had tried, but Tifa had made short work of their lecherous advances. Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think Rufus ShinRa would be the first to, (and with her consent) handle her like that. But she was far from embarrassed. She let him brazenly do as he wished for the time being.

And he was the teasing kind. As he kissed and caressed, he made it a point to barely flit past the most sensitive spots, and he'd get closer and closer, till just about the point where she couldn't handle that teasing, until finally he indulged her and gently kissed the very tip of the peak, picking up his head, grinning, waiting for her reaction. Rufus ShinRa may not have been downright evil, but this kind of play was almost torture to her. He chuckled and continued, kissing and gently alternating sucking and nibbling.

Tifa's body suddenly (and involuntarily) arched up toward Rufus, a soft moan escaped her lips, followed by a short giggle. "That tickles." She pushed him up and rolled over, and now she was on top of him.

"I'll bet." He whispered huskily. He gazed up at her, took her all in. Her striking eyes, her hair, and her beautifully firm body, all of it was inches away from him.

Tifa leaned into him and began kissing him again, pushing her naked upper body against his. That had to be one of the most beautiful feelings in creation: another being's bare skin against one's own, their body heats mixing and rising, and the ability to hear each other's heartbeats.

Not one to be dominated, Rufus rolled back over on top. He continued kissing her while a hand trailed down her torso. His lips followed soon afterward, he passed her belly button with his tongue. Soon, her bikini bottoms followed her top, but very slowly as he stroked and kissed her inner thighs. Then, he stood up for a moment to remove his slacks and boxers, and joined her again on the bed. He sternly looked her in the eyes. "Tifa, are you sure you…?"

She hushed him. "Yes." She knew that this could potentially turn out to be a mistake, but in this moment, she was willing to take that chance.

Rufus smiled warmly at her, a rare occurrence, and began kissing her neck. He supported himself with his cut forearms as she welcomed him openly into her. He went slowly, for fear of hurting her, but she softly urged him to go faster.

Suddenly Rufus and Tifa became one as she wrapped her legs around his waist, feeling both of their pleasures mounting as one, their moans of ecstasy mingled.

Unexpectedly to Rufus, she grabbed his hand and entwined her fingers with his, squeezing harder as she was about to climax, rocking her body in rhythm with his.

This made the experience completely different to Rufus. But his mind suspended suddenly when she called out his name and they both fell off the edge of ecstasy together into a cloud of bliss. Breathing hard, he eased himself into a laying position.

Tifa, also breathing hard, turned on her side and kissed his neck and back, running her hand along his spine.

Rufus was confused. As he was growing up, he knew his father went to the Honeybee Inn to satisfy his disgusting sexual fancy. And as far as he knew, while his mother was alive, his father never really showed much sexual interest in her. Never any little caresses here and there, no quick kisses. Growing up, Rufus just figured that sex happened when you had an attraction to someone who either had an attraction to you, or was _paid_ to have an attraction to you.

Tifa didn't just roll over and fall asleep. No, she continued the caresses, the cute little kisses. She made him feel comfortable.

He wasn't quite sure why, but he felt like he'd just found something that he'd been missing out on for a long time. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close because it felt so right, and they both drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

But if they'd only glanced at the window, they would have noticed the glow of aquamarine orbs watching their actions…

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A/n: Just for your satisfaction, I am posting this now, because I will be racking my brain for a week for a follow-up on this chapter. Besides, I can't bring myself to write anymore plot for this chapter. Short, sweet, and a cliff-hanger. Don't you just love me? Hehe. Anyway, post your comments on this love scene. NOTE: I have never written a love scene, so be a _little_ gentle. Oh, and quick quiz for my benefit: What has been your most favorite part and why? Ok, you don't have to write an essay, just put down two sentence answers, ok? Thank you guys so much for sticking with me! I love you for it!

Kage


	10. Chapter 10

A/n: Yes, another long hiatus, I know. I just started college. Whoopie! Alright, back on track. I hope you liked your lemon scene, I really tried hard. As I said before, I'd never written one before, and you were all very gracious with me. Thank you! Please continue to read and review and I will continue to do my best to entertain you!

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy. Square is the lovely owner to such a treasure. I on the other hand, do own this wonderful storyline. :)

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Cloud desperately racked his brain, trying to find a way to peacefully let his friends know that Tifa, one of their most beloved, was suddenly in the arms of their once major enemies.

Barrett and Cid would blow up first, cursing and spitting at hearing the ShinRa name, and then Yuffie would freak out, because she still had a vendetta against the company. Red XIII would say nothing at first, but would be in a foul mood. Vincent would disappear mysteriously and then resurface after checking on her himself. And Aerith would just giggle and say, "How cute!" …Never even caring that Tifa was with the man who owned the company that created Sephiroth… who killed Aerith.

Cloud put a hand to his face. Where did that come from? He noticed his sudden rage at Rufus. Never had he felt so helpless in the presence of someone he'd hated. Any man that had _anything_ to do with Sephiroth must be destroyed.

Maybe… just maybe this was Cloud's chance to redeem himself and his friendship to Tifa, by fulfilling that promise made so long ago. What kind of friend had he been to her in the past few years? Not a good one; he ran away to join SOLDIER and never tried to contact her. He could do nothing to stop Tifa's father being killed or the town being burned by Sephiroth.

Not only was he a bad friend to her, he was completely oblivious to the fact that she'd loved him since childhood. That one line had blown him away. Had he ever seen her in that light? No… She'd always been there for him, someone to talk to when he was down. But… Looking back now… she grown into quite an attractive woman.

He had to go back for her. It was the only way. "She only thinks that she's in love with him. There's just no way that Tifa would ever fall in love with someone that hurt her family." He started back towards Costa del Sol. Night was falling, and darkness would be his cover.

He reached the villa quickly, and thought shortly about what he was about to do. "She's going to hate me for spying, but it's for her own good. I wanna know that ShinRa's not trying to hurt her." Cloud stretched to look into the window, and assessed the situation.

Tifa was lying asleep on the couch, grinning, and it seemed that she was dream-talking, because her mouth was moving. And she was in a white bikini.

Never had Cloud seen Tifa in such little clothing; he knew she had a toned body, but seeing her like this was a different experience for the ex-SOLDIER. The little girl from his childhood was a full grown woman now, and she seemed to transform before his eyes. And she had said that she loved him!

Cloud shook his head violently to disperse those thoughts before continuing. Soon he witnessed Rufus entering the room, and he didn't like the look on the president's face.

Rufus had a smirk, a somewhat evil-looking smirk that just didn't sit well with Cloud. And this was the smirk that he was wearing. The ShinRa leader made his way to the couch where Tifa lay and stood over her, examining her sleeping form, chuckling.

Cloud readied himself to jump through the window if necessity called for him to gut the son of a bitch if he even so much as touched her inappropriately.

But Rufus didn't, he just stood over her, watching, waiting for her to wake up. And soon she did, looking quite embarrassed. But after some time, they both laughed, and Rufus sat down on the couch while Tifa sat up.

Cloud watched, growing sick with how near Rufus was to Tifa. Watched as he ran his fingers through her hair, as he leaned in close to her face, as she wrapped her arms around his neck… But were those tears in her eyes? "So help me, if he said anything to make her cry…" He reached for his sword…

But then he saw Rufus smile, shake his head and stand up, and Tifa grabbing his hand, forcing him to sit back down with her… It was Tifa who was leading this on now, Rufus was just sitting back with her in his lap.

Was this what she wanted? Physical comfort? How had she gotten Rufus to comply with that? Somehow, Rufus ShinRa was comforting Tifa, holding her close, wrapping his arms around her in a secure hug. Was this the type of relationship that she'd wanted with Cloud? Seeing this scene start to unfold before him made him feel a new emotion. It was _he_ who should've been in there comforting her, _he_ should've been the one to caress her, run his fingers through her hair.

Jealousy ripped through him as he watched the scene turn even more physical. Cloud could hardly believe it as he witnessed Tifa kiss his enemy, while Rufus' hands wandered up to her buttocks, pulling her toward him. Every awful thing that can be done to a person was being done to Rufus in Cloud's mind at the moment the president picked Tifa up and started to carry her to one of the bedrooms. Cloud knew what was going to happen next, and the thought made him outright ill. He went to the next window, where his suspicions where soon fulfilled.

Aerith seemed to be forgotten as rage continued to build in Cloud's mind. He wanted to rip Rufus in to a million pieces, one section at a time. Tifa was his friend, and Rufus was taking advantage of her innocence. Cloud didn't know what to do at that moment: to run in there and rip Rufus off of Tifa, or to just stay put and formulate a plan. He wisely chose to stay put, but only after valiantly fighting back his anger. He left the villa to regroup and headed toward the nearest bar. After what he just saw, he was going to need a stiff drink.

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Rufus awoke the next morning and smiled at Tifa, who was still sleeping, lying with her head on his chest. She completely amazed him. The entire time they had been together since he saved her life, he had hungered for her body, and the pleasure it would bring him... a trait he'd probably picked up unintentionally from his father. Rufus ShinRa had never seen any woman show the type of affection that she'd given him last night. She managed to turn what he thought was mainly for pleasure into a completely different event. He now truly understood the difference between having sex and making love.

_Wait, that would mean that I'd have to admit that I'm in love. Well, maybe I am. I don't think that I could feel this way about another woman; it just wouldn't be the same. _He thought, softly stroking her hair.

The morning light hit Tifa's eyes, and she turned over in her sleep, revealing her bare back. Her adorable morning tendencies amused Rufus.

He looked at the clock and realized that it was time for the both of them to get out of bed. He gently ran his fingertips down her exposed back, and lightly kissed her uncovered shoulder. "Tifa… Its time to wake up…"

Tifa groaned quietly. "But I'm tired… Can't we just stay in bed today?"

Rufus pulled his face closer to her, so his chin was resting on her shoulder. "Well we could, but I thought you hated 'wasting the day' in bed?"

Sighing, Tifa turned her head toward Rufus' face and kissed his nose. "Fine. I'll make breakfast." She sat up and got out of bed, still stark naked from the night before. Grabbing the first clothes she saw, she ended up putting on his silk boxers and beater. Smiling at Rufus and blowing a sarcastic kiss, she sashayed from the room.

_Damn, she looks better in those than I do…_ he thought. Then remembering where he was, in her room, he slapped his forehead. _She just took my clothes. What does that woman expect me to do, run naked to my room? _

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Tifa giggled as she saw Rufus try to sneak to his own room out of the corner of her eye, but she still caught sight of his rear as he closed the door.

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A/n: Yes, I know, it's an extremely short chapter, but I'm trying to get out a chapter before people get mad and start throwing rubber duckies again. It's kind of a review through Cloud's eyes, and I think that this could be just a few more chapters longer. Anyway, more soon, I've been in a writing mood. I've also been working on BLT, so look for that soon, too! Love ya, review please?

-Kage


	11. Chapter 11

A/n: Hullo again! I'm going to try to update a bit more often. I know I keep saying that, and I always get sidetracked with something else, but hopefully, this time it will be different. I just want to set this small time aside to thank all of you who review, especially over and over again, on nearly every chapter. I love you guys; you always give me the gumption to go on, and never give a negative criticism. I'm very glad you enjoy my fic so much. You've all been extremely helpful to my writing ability, telling me when you don't think something belongs, or when you think a character is acting funny, or if I make grammar mistakes. I hope to be a serious author soon, and you all have contributed to my confidence and skills as a writer. So, THANK YOU! Look out for my books in a couple of years; I'll probably still be under the pen-name 'Kage Lockheart'.

On another note, a lot of you have been wondering about the photo. Well, you'll find out _very_ soon. Like, in this chapter soon. Hehe.

Now, on with the chapter!

Disclaimer: Final Fantasy belongs to Square, but Ties that Bind Us will always be mine.

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"I think you need to slow it down there, buddy. A little more time between shots and I won't cut you off, deal?" A rotund bartender stood in front of a shabby blonde customer who was already starting to shake with anger.

"Don't tell me how to drink, asshole. Just leave me alone, its not like I'm going to be driving anywhere. Shit, I don't even have enough money to stay in a hotel tonight." Cloud looked up from his new shot of tequila and glared up at the barkeep. "Let me drown my (hic) miseries in peace, k?" Letting his glare go and shifting into pitiful mode, he downed his new shot and let the burning liquid slide down his throat.

The barkeep merely shook his head and moved on to the next customer, making sure to take the tequila with him. He'd seen many cases like this one, and he knew that it was probably because of some woman. Having been down that road too, he learned to keep his mouth shut and move on.

Cloud put his head in his hands, and took a long, deep breath. _What the hell is wrong with me? Everything I touch crumbles. Aerith is dead, Tifa said that she once loved me, and that's long gone now. And now she's with …ShinRa. What to do Cloud? I know she needs to be saved, that lying son of a bitch is just going to break her heart, or worse, use her against us. But what if I'm wrong? What if that rich bastard did turn over a new leaf? Look at what he's done for new Midgar… All those people getting houses without having to pay a huge sum of money for them. How could ShinRa be getting anything out of that? God, how can I be sure?_ His thoughts suddenly turned to jealousy when he remembered what he just witnessed only an hour ago.

_No. Rufus is cold-hearted slime ball. Why would he have any feelings for Tifa? She has no money, no power over anything he'd be interested in… He's just using her body. And when he's done with her, he'll throw her out, like yesterday's garbage. _"**SON OF A BITCH!**" Cloud suddenly yelled above the jukebox music.

Everyone turned to see the source of the outburst, and when they saw it was a poor hobo down on his luck, they all turned back around and began to drink again.

Not caring that he'd made a fool of himself, he continued in his thoughts. _She needs me. I should be the one comforting her, not the man whose family almost killed the planet. I'd love her more than that pompous brat could ever even imagine. Why didn't I see it before? I hate Rufus ShinRa. I hate him even more than that damn president father of his._ Cloud's old enemy had just added another injustice to his long list. But maybe, just maybe, if he played his cards right, he'd save Tifa, and she'd fall in love with him again. Jealousy fueled his anger, and nothing could make him see different.

Mental images passed through his mind of Rufus caressing Tifa's bare skin, kissing her sweet lips, undressing her, it made him sick to his stomach. The nausea was almost too much to bear, and all that alcohol made it ten times as bad. He slammed his drinking money on the counter and staggered outside, desperately trying to make it to a place where he could throw up without disgusting someone. Just barely making it to a conveniently placed garbage can, he heaved the contents of his stomach, which wasn't much.

When he finished, he stood up, wiping his face on his sleeve. "I swear, he's not going to take her away from me too. I'll show him." He began walking, or rather stumbling, to the nearest shelter, when a hand clamped on his shoulder.

"Hey, you okay buddy? You really look sick. You need a place to stay tonight?"

The voice sounded roughly familiar, and it made Cloud rack his brain for the face, because his vision was so doubled. "Whoozat?" He muttered incoherently.

"Whoa, you're worse than I thought. Come on."

Cloud had no choice but to follow the person grabbing his arm, gently guiding him to another place to put a roof over his head. As soon as his head hit the pillow, his vision diminished and the room went dark. Cloud was out like a light.

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Rufus looked through his suitcase, trying to find suitable travel clothes. They were finally going to leave paradise and go back to New Midgar. But something wasn't right with his clothing. Upon further inspection, it seemed that most of his shirts and beaters were folder differently. With a slight, but disappointed smile on his face, he shook his head and gave a sigh of exasperation. "Checking out my credibility I see. Should have known she would go snooping, sooner or later." He walked out into the living area and called her. "Tifa, come here, please…"

A more awake bed headed brunette answered his call. "Yay! You said please, ten points for you…" She trailed off when she saw a bit of a storm brewing in his sapphire eyes.

"Tifa, is there something you want to tell me? Or **ask** me rather?"

Tifa's eyes widened like a deer caught in the headlights. "Um… No, I'm not sure what you're… Oh, ok, yes, I went through your things. I'm sorry, but its still a big step for me. And yes, I saw the photo. What's that all about, if you don't mind telling me?" She sat down on the couch, Rufus following behind.

"Well, where to begin? Hm… the younger boy is me when I was around two. I don't know who the older one is. But I do know he's my half-brother."

Tifa, remembering the resemblance to Cloud, gasped. Brothers

"My parent's marriage was arranged, and was a very unhappy one. They both had side lovers, but still tried together to have a baby, preferably a boy. My mother knew that dad had many girls, but Old Man didn't know she was sneaking out with her one lover. She was much more discreet. Well, she finally got pregnant, and the following year, gave birth to the first ShinRa heir. Mother wasn't sure who the father was, but she had a strong feeling it wasn't my father. She kept her mouth shut about it for a long time.

"Within that same year, she got pregnant again, with me. I came along, and things were fine for a good few years. But something happened, and it leaked to my father that my mother was seeing another man, so he made the two of us take a paternal blood test. Well, my older brother wasn't my old man's son, and from what I heard, he was screaming for a week, He forced my mother from our home, stripped her of her status, money, and power, and had her lover assassinated by the Turks. I don't know what happened to her or my older brother." Rufus shifted his gaze to Tifa. "That's what Turk Vincent Valentine told me, anyway. He was a kid trainee at the time it happened, and was living in the mansion as a servant for a summer job to pay for that training. He saved that picture and gave it to me shortly before he disappeared."

Tifa's eyes were as wide as plates when Rufus finished his story. "Oh my goodness, your poor mother! Is she still alive?" She grabbed his arm and reassuringly stroked it.

He smiled at her. "Hey, it's alright, I don't really remember much of her. I don't recall what she looked like. I just remember she smelled like roses. As for her still being alive, I don't know. Dad destroyed all her photos, and had her change her name. She supposedly got away with my brother alive, because my father just couldn't bear to kill him after he'd lived as his son for so long. But yes, I carry the photo with me because I do remember my brother. His name was Vance. He was very protective of me, and I was of him. We looked out for each other…" Rufus chuckled. "That is, unless I took one of his toys for my own, and vice versa."

"But you don't know where he is? Or who he is for that matter?" Tifa nervously ventured.

"No. I haven't had much time to look into the matter, and whenever I do, I run into a dead end. My father made sure a lot of my mom and brother was erased from ShinRa… it's as if they'd never really been there at all." He shrugged. "No matter. One day I'll get to the bottom of this mystery. And as for _you_." He poked her nose. "Next time you're feeling snoopy, ask me. I'll gladly tell you anything you want to know."

Tifa blushed. "I know…" She shrugged. "Wow. So, your brother could be right under your nose, and you'd never even know it, huh?" She asked, trying to see if all the puzzle pieces worked in Cloud's favor. Mr. Strife had no father, only a mother, who was a bit off, a little strange, some said. She was a very good mother, always looking out for Cloud. But she always had a distant look on her face, as if she'd lost something dear to her, long ago. Unfortunately, she didn't make it out of the flames of Nibleheim when Sephiroth burned their small village.

"I guess… What's with your tone of voice, you sound like you know something?" He looked at her with a sidelong glance.

She shrugged and giggled. "Nah, just speculating. I'm sure that you'll find your brother."

Rufus drew his eyebrows together. "You don't seem too sure about me finding my mother, eh?"

Catching a breath in her throat, she chewed on her lower lip. "Um, not necessarily; I can't be sure on what you'll find, Rufus. But I'll help you look." _Man, Rufus is good at catching anything in what I say._

Quirking an eyebrow, Rufus shook his head at her. "Whatever."

"Hey! Don't you whatever me! Ten points off!" Tifa said with mock anger.

"Heh, what are all these 'points' supposed to add up for anyway?" He noticed she had been 'grading' him recently with ten point additions for nice gestures, and ten point deductions for any sarcasm or mean remarks he made.

"Your final grade mister. I'm trying to teach you to be nice. So far though, we've made tons of progress. You really are starting to be nicer." She poked his stomach, giggling again at his 'outie' belly button.

"Are you going to tell me what my score is so far, Miss Tifa?" He inquired.

"That's for me to know, and for you to find out." She said with a condescending grin.

"Can I at least know what'll happen to me if I get a good score?" Rufus was intrigued now.

"Nuh uh-uh! You'll find out… _if_ you get a good grade." Tifa cheerfully skipped back to her own room to pack up her things.

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Reno bit his thumb, his forehead covered in sweat. _Damn, it's hot here. Why the hell did they choose Costa del Sol?_ He sat back in his porch recliner, debating if he should go to their villa. He was taking his own vacation, although it wasn't turning out to be much of one. His air conditioner broke, Elena wasn't able to join him on this vacation, and he had a drunken man in his bed, probably stinking up the sheets with even more of the vile liquid he'd been puking up all night.

The red head sighed and stood up, about to walk over to the villa… but sat back down. _I can't burden them with this guy right now… They're on vacation!_ But on the other hand, his brain relayed a more urgent message. _Yes, but you're on vacation too, why do you gotta deal with the poor shmuck? _Again, his brain answered for him. _Because you picked him off the street, dummy!_ Reno released a frustrated sigh, but then jumped when he heard a crash from his room.

"Hey… Where the hell am I?" A blonde stumbled out onto the porch.

"You're at my crappy vacation house. You feelin' any better yet?" Reno looked up at Cloud.

"Somewhat. Hey, um, thanks I guess for the room." Cloud knew Reno had good intentions. He had been a visitor to the 7th Heaven before the whole Sephiroth incident, and was good friends with Tifa.

"No problem, man. I wouldn't let ya just pass out on the street. Sit down, stay a while, take a load off." The Turk motioned to the chair next to him. Once seated, he asked the former SOLDIER the question he'd been wondering about since the previous night. "What's got you so worked up that you got drunk off your ass? Trust me, I've been in your shoes, drinking was my thing up till a few months ago."

"I don't wanna talk about it." Cloud looked the other way.

Reno frowned. It had to be one of two things, if not both at the same time. Either it was his dead girlfriend that was still bugging him, or he'd just recently found out about Rufus and Tifa. "Are you sure you don't wanna talk about it? I have a feeling I know what it is… Did you get an interesting little surprise upon arriving here in the past few days?"

Cloud huffed, but didn't answer. He didn't trust himself in his hung-over state to reveal anything to Reno. He might be a friend, but he was still worked for Rufus.

Reno accepted this over obvious gesture and silenced himself about the matter. He'd be talking soon, Reno knew. Men always talked about their troubles after a night of hard drinking whether they meant to or not. All he had to do was be patient.

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A/n: Well, that's all for this chapter. Longer than the last one, ne? I really am trying to update faster now, and by my usual standards, this is a bit faster. At least its not 4 months, eh? Anywhoo, I was serious in my beginning note! I love you guys, continue to review, and I'll keep churning out the chapters! Now you know about the photo. What do you think of the story I cooked up for it? Does it go in line with everything? Would it explain why Cloud and Rufus look a lot alike? Does it make sense now why Rufus doesn't have a mommy? I don't know… Anyways… Until later, and that will be soon! Keep up the reviews!

-Kage


	12. Chapter 12

A/n: Hey guys, long time, huh? Yeah, I've been trying to catch up ever since hurricanes started tearing up the southern states down here. I feel sorry for everyone in New Orleans… that was a horrible tragedy. I neighbor Louisiana and we almost got hit with a huge hurricane too, so we had to evacuate and I had to leave almost everything I held dear here. Fortunately, the hurricane drifted off course from us, but still hit a little bit of Texas and some of Louisiana. So, I've been catching up on the days of college that we missed, and all that jazz. Anywhoo, here's another chapter! Read and Review please!

Disclaimer: Charactersh ish not mine, Itsh Square'sh, but the shtoryline ish mine.

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"…And I just don't understand what she sees in that rich bastard. I was supposed to be her hero…" They story just flowed and flowed from Cloud as he poured out his heart to the least likely person.

Reno just stared, nodding every once in a while. He knew this was the reason Cloud was messed up and hung-over, but he had no idea that it was this bad.

"…And last night, I saw them getting intimate, and I was disgusted…"

Eyes wide, Reno felt he _had_ to say something to that. "**_What?_** Wow, that's amazing. You know Cloud, I'm sorry I have to interrupt, but I need to explain something to you. And I'm not just saying this because I work for the guy, but just listen, ok?"

The blonde nodded reluctantly.

"Ok, whether you want to believe it or not, Rufus is a good guy. He was confused about the business when he first came to power, but that was because he was locked in an office and made to watch movies on being President of ShinRa Inc. Look around you. None of the Mako reactors are working; no Mako is being sucked out of the earth. That was Rufus' idea, and that was his idea as soon as he got out of his hospital bed. He saw what happened to Midgar, and wanted to make everything right because it was his _father's_ fault that people were killed, that Sephiroth had been born, that Mako had been sucked out of the ground and that the whole Planet was dying.

"So, he started building a new Midgar, with _free_ new houses, _better_ houses so that the higher status and the lower status have less of a gap. He researched other means of producing energy so that it wouldn't harm the Planet. He's created a ton of jobs so that people can earn money and support themselves. He really has been trying to atone for all of the sins that the company associated with his name had committed, and he has nothing to gain but people's gratitude. I think he's done one hell of a job. As far as I can tell, Rufus ShinRa is a changed man, and for the better. And I think that he deserves to have someone who appreciates him as a person." Reno looked at his upset guest, hoping to see a bit of understanding. "I mean, he did save her life, doesn't that count for something for her? She would have died under that rubble if he didn't care about her a bit. Besides, he's kinda had a thing for her since you two fought on the balcony."

"But why did it have to be Tifa? She loved _me_." The blonde said with an air of disappointment.

"Key word there, bud: lov_ed_. You had a chance. And your feelings were justifiable. At the time, you just didn't see her that way. That's life, bud, plain and simple. You know that you owe her the right to her feelings without getting in the way. She did the same for you when you met Aerith, am I right? Why don't you do her a favor and trust her?"

"Yeah, I guess. But I _will_ be watching those two. And if he hurts her in any way… I will be there in no time to kick his ass." Cloud retorted with a sour edge.

Reno patted Cloud on the back. "You need to relax. If I know Rufus, he would protect her with his life. She's in good hands." Reno laughed. "Now all you have to do is get that lovely image of the two of them out of your head."

Cloud suddenly felt sick again.

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Tifa peered out of the helicopter window. "I can't wait to get home and see my bar!"

Rufus grinned at her. "Yes, we'll probably hold the grand opening in a month or so, after the christening of the city. You can have all of your AVALANCHE friends there if you like, as long as you promise they won't attack me or my workers… In the meantime, where are you planning to stay?"

Tifa looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, usually there's an upstairs to the bar. That's where I stayed before."

Rufus opened his mouth to speak, but Tifa put a finger to his lips.

"Or… I could stay with you for a while. If _you_ don't mind, that is…" She said quietly, drawing the finger she had on his lips down to his chest, waiting for him to answer.

A smile spread across his lips. "I wouldn't have it any other way. I'll have your things brought to my estate. Oh, and by the way… I've been meaning to ask you something. I really hate to ask this of you but…"

Tifa wondered what Rufus would 'hate' to ask of her, and hoped it wasn't bad.

"You know that the Grand Opening of the city is in a few weeks. Well, a few people know that I'm alive and am funding this project. However, there are very many people who do not know that I survived Midgar's fall, and that I'm behind the reconstruction of New Midgar. I'm afraid people might get upset if they see me and automatically assume that I'm going to put the Mako reactors back into use and all that horrible mess. But if they see you, one of those who defeated Sephiroth, they might stay calm and not go into a riot at the first sight of me. So, please, would you go as a peace keeper, and my date?" Rufus' eyes pleaded.

Rolling her own eyes, she chuckled. "And what made you think that I was going to let you go on your own and cause mass chaos? Come on, you know I'm smarter than that. Plus, I just can't turn down those puppy dog eyes. Especially since they're your last resort."

"Hmph. They are not. As for you going, I was anticipating that you would, so as I called Elena, and she should be at the helipad when we land so you can immediately go shopping for a dress and shoes and whatever else you women need to ready yourselves for a big occasion. Oh, and make sure every one of your old friends make it to the opening. I wouldn't want them to miss the festivities. I'll arrange for housing if they do stay." Rufus kissed the top of her head.

"Geez, you trying to get rid of me first thing we land? I don't even have time to unpack? Besides, what's the rush, we have a few weeks!" She looked up at him.

"No rush, I just figured that you'd want to get away from me for a little while and shop since you've been cooped up with me for such an extended period of time. Besides, Elena will use any excuse she can to charge an expense to her business credit card. Oh, by the way, here." Rufus handed Tifa a card. "I had this made for you. It has a very high limit, and the business will pay for all the expenses." He smiled. "Don't worry about paying me back, you do enough of that already."

Tifa shook her head. "I can't take this!" She started to hand it back, but Rufus wouldn't take it.

"Yes you can. Trust me; nothing you could buy could put a dent in the savings of the ShinRa Inc." He watched as she reluctantly placed the card in her purse. "It can be used in emergencies, or if you randomly see something that you like. Go get your dress." He whispered in her ear as they landed.

Elena was waiting by the rooftop entry as Rufus and Tifa descended from the helicopter. "Hi! I'm Elena; you must be Miss Tifa Lockhart! It's so great to finally meet you under good terms! Are you ready to go dress shopping? I know I am!" The hyperactive blonde shook the brunette's whole arm.

Tifa laughed. "Um, sure. I'll help you out if you help me." The two grinned at each other as Rufus chuckled and walked inside with two guards bringing in the remainder of the vacation luggage.

He walked into his office and sat down, giving a heavy sigh. A bittersweet feeling waved over him as he was glad to be back to work where he felt most useful, but disheartened that he'd get less alone time with Tifa. As if knowing that he was back to work, the phone rang suddenly. "Rufus speaking."

"Ooh, Ruffie got some booty this week, didn't he? I heard from a **_very_** reliable source that you and Miss Tifa got 'intimate'. Care to elaborate please? I'm _dying_ to know the details."

Rufus knew that he'd never live this piece of information down, now that Reno had it. His face reddened. "Where did you hear that from?" he asked calmly.

On the other end, Reno laughed. "I bet your face is _so_ red right now. I wish I could be there to see it. Man, you were about a hundred yards from getting into a huge bloody fight with a drunkenly enraged friend of Teef's. Cloud was gonna try to kick your ass; he saw the show you two put on. Needless to say, he wasn't too happy about it."

Rufus shook his head. "Is he going to be trouble? And how do you know all this?"

"Well, he'd gotten drunk after he saw you two I guess, and almost passed out on the street. So, I helped him to my villa and lent him my bed. I kinda like couches better anyway. Well, he was hung-over the next morning and spilled everything. _Everything._ Man, you **_so_** owe me. I talked him out of completely hating your guts. Now he only hates you a little. I oughta get a pay raise for that." Reno's gloating made Rufus relax a bit. "Thanks Reno. But I have a bad feeling about Cloud. Can you tail him for a while; make sure he stays out of trouble?" Rufus could almost _hear_ Reno's eyes roll.

"Yeah, yeah, there goes the vacation."

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Cloud stared ahead at the dusty road ahead of him. He was headed back to Midgar at the moment, and he'd just gotten off of the boat that crossed the sea to Junon. He was going to visit all of the others, just as soon as he made sure that Tifa was still all right. Reno had made him feel better earlier that day, but it didn't fill the depression that he still carried.

"Hey! Wait up! Do you need a travel buddy? I think we're going in the same direction. Whaddaya say?" A familiar voice called from behind him.

Cloud winced. _Speak of the devil…_ he thought. "Whatever." He stopped to let the redhead catch up. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were hired to follow me. I thought you were on vacation." He eyed his companion warily.

Reno shrugged calmly. "Eh, duty calls. You know how it goes. I'm not following you; I'm just taking the scenic route. Thought you might need some company." He yawned.

The blonde ex-Soldier shook his head. "Fine."

After walking in silence for a long time, Reno drummed up a conversation. "Sooo… Are you going to the grand opening of New Midgar?"

Cloud grunted. "Why, it's just going to be pleasantries and champagne. There's no use in going to some party that you have to wear a jacket to enter."

Reno stretched as he walked. "Nah, its not gonna be that fancy. Rufus told me that I don't even have to wear a tie. It just semi-formal. I'm sure the girls'll get all dolled up though. Come on, you know you wanna. Maybe you'll find a nice girlfriend."

That was a bad nerve to touch on at the moment, and Cloud let Reno know with a loud uninhibited guttural growl.

Eyes widening at the angry noise that emanated from Cloud, Reno put his hands in the air, disclaiming his last comment. "Ooh, sorry, won't say anything about that again. So… Um, what _do_ you plan on doing once you get to Midgar?"

"I plan to check on Tifa and then go to visit my friends. Why so interested in what I'm up to? Are you afraid that I might go after your precious president?" The ex-Soldier eyed the ex-Turk.

"Nah, I'm not worried about that at all. What I am worried about is that you might still be depressed. I know where you've been, what you're going through. But I know that your friends can definitely cheer you up."

Cloud shook his head and vehemently wished he hadn't let Reno come along. "What do you know about how I feel?"

"Well, I'm no psychiatrist, but I do know about the drinking, the depression, the overall feeling of self worthlessness. I've been down to the deepest reaches of hell and back. I can relate to the fact that you just aren't having a good couple of years. I drowned about six years in booze. Most of it I can't even remember. One thing I do remember though, is relying on my friends to save my life. I wandered so far away that I teetered on the very edge of alcohol poisoning. I seriously wanted to die. I mean, everything was going wrong anyway. Surely no one wanted me, a wandering, uselessly lazy and broke, drunk. The farther I got from my friends, the worst it got. Finally, I got help. And my friends were there, every step of the way. Anyway, don't whine about how bad your problem, you never know when someone around has something worse." Reno finished, slightly angered at how much of a jerk that his companion was being.

Surprised at Reno's little outburst, Cloud quieted. "Sorry. I'm just tired of everything jumping just out of my reach, or not being good enough."

The redhead nodded. "Not good enough? You beat Sephiroth!"

"That didn't save Aerith."

Reno shook his head. "You need to quit beating yourself up over that. She died trying to save the world. She died doing something heroic. She has that honor. You don't have to try to bring her back, just keep her memory alive. Life goes on."

Cloud shrugged slightly. "I guess. Maybe it is time to finally let go. Life does go on…"

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A/n: FINALLY!  I can't believe this chapter took so long to post! Rar. Geez… I'll post a bit more soon. As for this chapter, I developed Reno a bit, and am going to start winding down. A few more things will be explained soon though, like the connection between Rufus and Cloud. And what will happen at that fabulous grand opening? Find out soon! For now, please review!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Oh. My. Gosh. I have been away from this for waaaaaaaaay too long. I'm so sorry guys. I have had the most drama in the past few months than I have had in my life. Anyway, here's another chapter. I hope you find it in your heart to continue to read and review! You know I love you for it! He's chapter 13. Oh, and thank you to all the people who voiced concern for me on the whole hurricane issue. No worries, we're all ok, and things are back to normal, for the most part. Thank you so much!

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"Hey, Elena, do you know anything about Rufus' family? His parents I mean." Tifa asked cautiously.

"Sure, what do you want to know?" Elena replied as she sorted through evening gowns.

"Well," Tifa began, also looking through dresses. "Who is, or was, his mother?"

Elena suddenly stopped. "We don't really talk about that. Well, we didn't when Mr. ShinRa was in control. No one really has anything to say about it since he died, and Rufus seemed too busy with the company. You see, no one actually knows _who_ his mother is. And most of the Turks who were in employment at that time were terminated. We know what happened, but we don't mention it. And if Rufus doesn't want to talk about it, neither do we."

Tifa nodded. "I see. Well, I just wanted to try and help solve the mystery. Rufus told me what happened, but he till has no idea who his mother was."

Elena nodded back. "I see. So, he's secretly trying to find her on his own."

"Yup, and his brother."

Elena's mouth dropped. "No way, he has brother too!"

Tifa clammed up, knowing she'd said too much.

"Ooh, you can tell me! Please? We just ere told that the two had an argument and we didn't know over what. So she had a love child!" Elena gushed. Tifa's silence gave the air a certain uncomfortable quality. "Oh, all right. I won't say anything. Matter closed. Ooh! This is a pretty one."

Tifa made a silent vow that moment to never bring anything up until someone else said something first.

The blonde Turk piped up. "So, are you going to try that one on?"

Tifa nodded. "Yeah, I think so." She wandered to the nearest dressing room, still looking at dresses along the way. Finally making it to the changing room, she fell into deep thought.

From what she could remember in Nibelheim, the Strife's moved in a house down from hers when she was three years old, that was what her father told her. She also remembered that her parents were very friendly with Mrs. Strife. And then, shortly after the ShinRa's moved away from Nibelheim and into Midgar, Mrs. ShinRa really got withdrawn. She never really went outside unless she needed groceries. Nevertheless, Cloud grew up fine. And then… he made the decision to join SOLDIER. "Why did he do that anyway? He'd said he wanted to be famous and be in the papers. But if I remember correctly, Cloud hated to be in the spotlight." Tifa's eyes widened.

Did Cloud actually know? Did his mother tell him who he really was? That he had a brother?

Tifa suddenly had the urge to call and talk to Cloud.

"Are you coming out so I can see that dress?" Elena's voice shattered her thoughts.

"Coming!" Tifa opened the dressing room door and stepped out, doing a three-sixty in the process. It was a black mid calf length dress that hugged her every curve. A plunging neckline made the dress a bit provocative, but the draping material from the straps saved some skin for the imagination.

Elena clapped. "Oh, it looks gorgeous on you!"

Tifa smiled. "Do you think Rufus will like it?"

Her blonde colleague smiled boldly. "Hon, he'll _love_ it."

After she changed, Tifa searched her purse to see if she still had the PHS that Rufus gave to her. Letting loose a sigh of relief as she pulled it out, she dialed that all too familiar phone number.

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Reno and Cloud had been walking for a while now, and were just passing Kalm when Cloud's phone rang. Cloud reached for it and stared at the name displayed on the caller ID. "…It's Tifa." Half hoping to answer the phone and hear her crying about how she and Rufus had a huge fight, he hit the answer button. "Hello?" He said, warily.

"Cloud?" Came the reply. She wasn't crying.

"What's going on Tifa, haven't heard your voice on the phone in a while."

Tifa smiled on her end, he sounded like he was in a pretty decent mood. "Well, actually right now, I'm trying on dresses for the grand re-opening of Midgar. Are you going?" She hoped he would.

"I might drop in for a while." He said, knowing it would mean a lot to her if he did come.

"Good! But the real reason I called you… Um, are you alone?"

"No, I got ShinRa's redhead tagging along. But he can walk away for a minute." Cloud started at Reno, who immediately got the hint and walked in the other direction and suddenly found interest in a rock formation on the ground. "Ok, he's out of earshot. What did you want to talk about?"

Tifa cleared her throat. "I wanted to ask you… Why did you join SOLDIER? Some things aren't adding up quite right."

Cloud thought back to his childhood, and the day that he left Nibelheim. "I think… because I wanted to be famous like Sephiroth. I wanted to be a hero."

She shook her head. "No… that's not it… What had your mom said to you about joining ShinRa?"

Cloud's memories didn't want to go back that far. "My mom? She…" _Memory flash._ "…didn't want me to do it. Said something like, 'He'll kill you if he finds out who you are… Nothing good will come of you going to ShinRa.' I guess she was right."

Sighing, Tifa persevered. "Why didn't she like ShinRa? At that point they weren't doing anything wrong."

Cloud continued to think hard about his past. "I don't… know. Is there a point to this?"

Tifa sighed again. "Cloud, I'll tell you in a minute. Now, focus. Do you remember your father?"

Cloud shook his head in disbelief. "Look, Tifa, your asking me about the most emotionally scarring parts of my life. There's a reason people put mental blocks on those."

"Please, try to remember…"

"I was three or four! He died, that's what I remember… And…" He paused.

Tifa's heart quickened. "And?" She ventured

"And that's when we moved. When I got a smaller house."

Excitement mounting, Tifa continued her questions. "Moved from where?"

"I had to move out of my big bedroom… with all my toys… a bed room that I shared…"

"Shared with whom?" Tifa could hardly contain herself.

"My… brother? No, that can't be right. I don't have a brother. And I'm also seeing this other guy that I was supposed to call dad. Where did all this come from?" Cloud was thoroughly confused.

Tifa rushed him back into his reverie. "No, no, keep remembering! Did they call you something? Did you have another name?"

Cloud delved back into his deep childhood, remembering the big house he'd lived in so long ago. In his memory, he walked from his room to the room across the hall, where he saw his mother in a richer set of clothing than she wore before she died. She was sitting at the vanity, brushing her hair when she saw his reflection in her mirror. She smiled, turned around and picked him up. "Vance, I thought I told you to keep an eye on your brother…"

Cloud shot out of his memory. "Vance. My mom called me Vance?"

It was about this time that both Tifa and Cloud were feeling weak-kneed and had to sit down.

Eyes wide, Tifa laughed. "I bed you thought you were remembering another life, a past life."

All Cloud could reply was, "I was."

Reno walked over to his ashen faced companion. "Dude, are you ok? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Cloud shot Reno a dirty look and went back to Tifa. "You seem to know more about this than I do. Now, what's it all about? You said you'd tell me."

"Well Cloud, you're going to be surprised. Are you sitting down?"

His knees still refused to work, so he snorted and said, "You mean I have a choice?"

Tifa laughed, knowing he'd probably collapsed like she did. "Well Cloud, or should I say Vance, as it turns out, you are technically part of the ShinRa family."

"Technically?"

"Yeah, while President ShinRa wasn't your father, his wife was your mother. That big house you described was the ShinRa mansion in Nibelheim, and that brother that you mentioned…" Tifa trailed off, knowing that Cloud would fill in the blanks.

"No way. No **_fucking_** way. That scumbag is _my_ brother? Why did **_he_** get to keep his money and house and all that?"

Tifa could sense a bit of tension in Cloud's voice, but she knew he wasn't angry. "It was because a paternal test was done on the two of you. ShinRa wasn't your father, but he was Rufus'. Rufus doesn't know about this yet, but he _is_ looking for his brother."

Cloud's face whitened as reality set in. "What's he going to do if he found out it was me?"

Tifa sighed. "I dunno. I sure it will be an interesting reaction, though. I'm about to go see him, so I'll witness that epiphany firsthand!"

"Uh, alright. I guess I'll see you at the grand re-opening?" Cloud's color was returning slowly but surely.

Tifa chuckled. "Yep, I guess you will. Bye!"

Cloud hung up the phone, eyes wide. He had many different mixed emotions about this.

"Hey, what was that all about?" Reno offered a hand to help him up, but Cloud waved him off.

"No thanks, I think I'm going to sit here for a bit and think. I just found out that I have a brother."

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A/n: Woo! Another chapter finished… Can't **_believe_ **it took so long to update. XD Sorry guys, like I said, drama-rama, and it's still hanging in the air. More to come, I promise, I haven't given up on this story, so don't give up on me! Please review, lemme know how I'm doing!


	14. Chapter 14

A/n: Whoa. Just …whoa. It's been far too long to even think about the last time I updated. It's definitely been a year. I'd almost forgotten about it. But I recently got some reviews for Ties, and I've suddenly had more of a writing mood again. I'm not sure why. I'm really sorry I've given this up for so long, I'm sure half the people that had read this story don't even visit anymore. I'm amazed that there were people that still reviewed after the last date was 7/09/06… and I'm starting this chapter again on 7/08/07… We'll just see how this goes…

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, but I do own the storyline.

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Rufus sat in his office; paperwork stacked high from his week hiatus. He stared at it for a long while, like a formidable foe ready to strike, but he didn't want to touch the mountain of papers for fear he may get too absorbed. He was just about to give into the work that was calling his name like a siren to a lost sailor, when a soft knock saved him from that last reach.

"Rufus, are you in there?" Tifa's voice floated through the heavy oak doors.

A smile displayed across his face just at hearing her voice and he immediately answered. "Yes, come in, please." He was sure to add on the 'please'; he remembered the points this time.

However, Tifa was on a more serious wavelength and ignored his manners for a moment. "Hey, I want to ask you a few questions about your family. Are you busy?"

Rufus, seeing her determined demeanor, quirked his eyebrow before shaking his head 'no'.

"Good. Okay, you know you have a brother. You know that your father kicked your mother and your brother out. Do you remember anything before that?" She was going to try the same thing as she had with Cloud.

"Well no, considering I was two or three at the time. Do _you_ remember what happened to _you_ when you were two? Like I said before, I just remember that I had my brother with me at all times. And we played and fought a lot." Rufus sighed, but was interested in what she was trying to bring up to him.

_Maybe Cloud just has a better memory, he was a little bit older…_ she thought. Maybe she'd have to outright tell him. But would he believe her? And how would she prove it? "Did it ever occur to you that maybe when your father kicked them out, that maybe they didn't go very far? Maybe they stayed in Nibelheim?" She tried to lead him to the conclusion so he could figure it out himself.

"Yes, it's possible, Tifa, but what exactly are you getting at? I still don't know what their current names are, and the Shinra organization moved out of that mansion a year after the event." Rufus was starting to get frustrated. He knew she was trying to get him to realize something, but she wasn't giving him sufficient information.

"Okay, lets look at it this way. We know that you don't have a mother, you just had President Shinra growing up, correct?" Tifa waited for his biting sarcasm to strike back at her obvious comment.

And Rufus fought back that very urge to use his sarcasm. Patiently he nodded his head. "Correct. I had one 'parent'."

"Right, and in Nibelheim, Cloud only had a mother. Only one parent. They moved in to their small house when he was four." Now that she had pretty much given the answer away, she sat back to watch the fireworks.

"What does that have to do with…? Wait. Are you trying to tell me that Cloud Strife is my half brother? That's impossible. He and I could never be related. _**NEVER**_"

Tifa smiled. "You know, he said the same thing. You two are more alike than you know, and that may be the reason you don't get along. Shall I name a few reasons why he is your brother? You're both blonde and blue eyed like your mother, you both are stubborn and prideful, and you both can be cold and stoic at times. He and his mother moved into a small house in Nibelheim because that was all that she could afford after being stripped of everything she held dear. They changed their last name to Strife, probably because that was going to be life that she lived from then on: full of strife. She changed Cloud's name from Vance because she couldn't have anyone know that he was once a Shinra heir. And then the Turks killed her lover. She was never the same. You look at your picture more closely and tell me that isn't Cloud's goofy grin." She finished with a sigh.

Rufus grew more pale with every word she said. He looked at the picture of his brother and himself and was amazed to see his enemy in his own sibling. "And just how do you know all of this?" he managed to utter.

"Well, when I first saw the picture, I knew that either that was Cloud, or it was his twin. Remember, I grew up with him. I started piecing the puzzle together, and then asked Cloud to remember some things. And when he remembered his mother calling him Vance, that's when I knew." She looked at Rufus, wondering if he was getting angry.

"So he knows already. How did he take it?" He asked her, starting to realize that she had just solved his family mystery.

"At first he reacted harshly, but he wasn't mad about it at all. He's just as confused as you are. I think you two probably need to talk about it. I told him to come to the christening of New Midgar. And I just called everyone else too. They're coming, but they had a few apprehensions. I calmed them down, but I'm going to have to keep an eye on them." Tifa walked to his side of the desk. "Look, I know this is a huge realization, but we need to start planning some precautions for the opening of the city. I don't want anything bad to happen to anyone." She put her hand to the back of his head and played with his soft blonde hair.

Rufus was silent for a moment; the thought that Cloud Strife of AVALANCHE, an ex-SOLDIER was his brother was still sinking in. He was in utter amazement. "This is all very ironic, you know. We were against each other for so many years. To think we're actually brothers." He leaned back into her fingers that were massaging the back of his head.

"Tell me about it, I was in love with him for so long, and then you came along. Imagine my surprise when I found out! The only two men I've ever had feelings for are brothers." She giggled at his reaction to her saying 'feelings for' as he suddenly pulled away from her hand and whirled around to face her in his office chair.

"Had feelings for? Only feelings? Are you saying you still don't love me? Feh, woman, what does a man have to do?" Surprised at the words coming out of his mouth, Rufus shut it tightly after he finished. He was standing now, and he realized that his body had gone into intimidation mode; he was using his height to tower over her. He stepped back.

Tifa laughed, thinking that his reaction was very cute. "What a man has to do, my dear Rufus, is say that he loves me first. And that is what I'm waiting for. I have a feeling that you need a bit more time processing the true meaning of 'love' so I'm not pushing you or anything. Relax, I'm not going anywhere." She stepped toward him and wrapped her arms around his torso, taking in his scent.

Beaten, Rufus kissed the top of her head and said nothing.

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Cloud's thoughts were, for lack of a better word, clouded. He wasn't sure what to think of having a Shinra brat for a brother. Wait, he couldn't say that; HE was technically a Shinra brat. He had to admit, knowing that at one time he had money and his family was a world power was a pretty good feeling. Now he knew how Rufus could be a bit of a prick. On the other hand, he knew his family life was more messed up than he previously had thought.

His mother had always been good to him, but she always seemed to be in another world. She was always proper, even when they didn't have any money.

Now that he thought about it, he knew he was lucky to get his mother as his only parent, and not the late President Shinra. A small tinge of remorse for Rufus was the only one he'd ever felt for him, and it was because he knew how much it would have sucked if he had to live with the filthy bastard.

Cloud knew he probably would have ended up killing either himself or the President. He had to give Rufus some credit for putting up with all the crap that he must have had to deal with.

"Hey, I'm sorry to break you from your heavy thinking, but we're here." Reno's voice broke into Cloud's thoughts. "Hey, I'd probably be thinking just as hard as you about it. I mean hell, you were damn near royalty." He stuck his tongue out at Cloud. "If only it were that simple being a Shinra." Reno continued.

The ex-SOLDIER chuckled. "Well my life wasn't particularly easy either, you know."

Reno stopped short. "Did you just laugh? I daresay I don't think I've ever heard such a thing escape your lips."

"I'm allowed. I'm not very happy knowing I'm related to that Shinra brat, but I'm not angry about it. I just found out a lot about my family history today. Wouldn't you be happy about something like that?"

Reno shrugged. "I suppose. So, where are you staying? Rufus said you could shack up at the Shinra residence building on the south side of New Midgar. I'd take that offer, 'cause those apartments are niiiiiice. I believe that is where your friends will be staying too."

"Speaking of which, I don't know how they're gonna react when they go to this grand opening of the city… They may be a bit hostile. I'll try to calm them down, but they have all the feelings I do about Shinra." Cloud knew them better than anyone.

"Yeah, we know. We're going to be cautious. But we really do want them to come." Reno started to enter the Shinra building. "So are you coming in and visiting for a little while, or are you going to talk to your friends first?"

"I'm going to talk to them first and we'll all come to the apartments together. It's just going to be easier that way." The blonde stated.

Reno nodded. "Understood. You know where Tifa is, and you know where I am. Call one of us if you need us."

Cloud chuckled. "If anything goes wrong, you two will be the first to know."

As he watched Cloud leave, Reno was slightly worried. It wasn't that he was worried that Cloud was going to be trouble, but he didn't think that he'd take the news of finding out that Rufus was his brother so well. But maybe he was happy that he had some closure. Reno shrugged.

When he walked in the door, he was greeted with a flying hug from Elena, who hadn't seen him in a week. "I missed you!" she yelled, mid hug. "You've been gone for so long. I thought you were only going to be gone for a week?"

"Well, I got hung up in an assignment. Rufus wanted me to follow Cloud and make sure he was on his best behavior." He leaned down and gave Elena a peck on the lips. "And how have you been, all alone with out lil' ole me around, my cherry blossom?"

"Well, I got to buy a new dress for the party coming up. You're going to like it. A lot." She grinned up at him.

"Oh, I'm sure I'll love it. A lot."

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A/n: Here's a short chapter. I'm going to try to finish this soon, I know I'm not going to have half as many readers as I once had on this story. I'm going to try to revive this fic that has been dead for a year. :( Please, if you read this chapter, review it for my sake. It's the only way I know that people read the whole thing, and I really need the constructive criticism. Meaning: tell me about mistakes I made, and tell me about typos, and tell me about what you did or did not like. Thanks to the people who reviewed recently and spurred this current chapter. Love ya all!

Kage


	15. Chapter 15

A/n: After a sudden influx of reviews, I feel compelled to bring to you another chapter. We'll see how it goes after this one. Thanks for the recent reviews people! If it weren't for you all, I'd have quit writing a long time ago.

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After a couple of quiet days had passed, Tifa started to worry about not hearing from any of her friends. "I wonder if they're going to come, Rufus? I really can't stress any more to them how safe they'll be."

He looked up at her from his desk. "I wouldn't worry. They _will_ be here; whether they show up as honored guests or bust in through the roof is another matter."

Rufus' comment made Tifa smile. "Cute, Rufus, but I highly doubt that a roof entry would be smart. They'd come from where you'd least expect them, and with stealth and agility." She said, continuing the little game.

"Feh, I hardly see Mr. Wallace being stealthy and agile, much less that little Kisaragi girl. They'd bust in from the roof, without a doubt. I'd bet money on it." Rufus stood and walked to where Tifa was, standing behind her.

A familiar ring tone floated from Tifa's pocket and interrupted their conversation. They both recognized it, and Rufus snatched it from her before she could answer.

"Well, well, if it isn't my dear big brother." He said, and flipped open the phone as Tifa reached up for it. "Yes, Vance?" Rufus purred into the mouthpiece with a grin as he held the kick boxer's grabbing hands away.

"Give it back!" She whispered and giggled as she tried to reach.

"Did I call at a bad time? Because I really don't want to get the audio to the show I got the other night." Cloud's disgusted voice filled Rufus' ear.

"Well if you hadn't spied on us, I think that you'd be less scarred, am I right?" He replied.

Tifa stopped. "Spied on us…? When…?" She gasped, turned brilliantly red and suddenly ran from the room whispering, "Ohmygodohmygodohmygod…"

Rufus laughed. "Now looked what you've done, you've embarrassed Tifa. She's really quite adorable when she blushes like that…"

"Ok ShinRa, enough. I don't care to hear your comedy act, and you aren't making me mad. Look, just because we're brothers doesn't mean I feel any better seeing Tifa with you. This doesn't change much." Cloud turned serious.

"I completely understand, and I don't blame you. However I do wish I could prove to you that she is not in any danger. I don't expect you to be any more cordial to me that usual. But I do hope that someday we can learn to at least tolerate each other's presence, dear brother." Rufus said.

"We'll see. In the mean time, just take good care of her."

"Done. Any other requests?" Rufus queried.

"No requests, but I do want to warn you about a copycat rebel group. They call themselves 'Tidal Wave'. I know what you're thinking, 'what's with the stupid natural disaster name?' but they still believe you're up to no good. I told them there's no reason to fight right now, but they refused to believe me. I think they're just trying to follow in our footsteps to get fame and fortune. They know you're alive and they've been keeping a steady eye on you. I'm not worried about you; I just don't want Tifa to get caught in the crossfire. They really aren't too smart though."

Rufus nodded his head. "Yes, well, that's what we thought about your ragtag group too. Never underestimate the seemingly unintelligent. But, dually noted. Thank you for the heads up. Do you know where their base is? I'd like to keep an eye on them as well."

Cloud rolled his eyes at Rufus' jab at his team, but said nothing. "In the Midgar ruins, right where ShinRa HQ used to be."

"I see. Thank you for the information. And don't worry, I'll keep Tifa safe."

Cloud replied coldly, "You'd better." The line went silent.

Rufus pushed a button on his desk to summon Rude.

Tifa poked her head back in. "He... he watched us? I trusted that bastard! Just to find out he's a pervert!" She said, entering the room again.

Rufus chuckled. "Well, it _is_ sort of our fault for conveniently forgetting to shut the blinds. Besides, I think he needed it. From what I heard from a reliable source, he was extremely jealous. Made him think about you in a completely different light. And it made him want to rip my guts out."

"Figures. I can only imagine how he felt." She gave a strange smile.

Rufus shook his head. "I can assure you, he made himself sick over it. But anyway, how are my politeness-points adding up? I'm looking forward to that reward…"

Tifa gave a Rufus-like smirk. "I can imagine that you are. However, your final score will be tallied after your grand opening party and speech." She said in her most Rufus-sounding vocabulary.

A knock interrupted their conversation. "Come in Rude." Rufus said, giving Tifa a sidelong glance.

A rather sullen looking Turk entered the room, but brightened upon seeing Tifa.

Tifa smiled at Rude. "Well, I know you two have business to talk, so I'll leave. Call me when you're free, we'll have dinner, Rufus."

The blonde nodded, noticing Rude's sad sigh.

When she left, Rude sat up straight. "What's the order, sir?"

Rufus chuckled. "At ease, Rude, relax. You needn't be so formal anymore. However, I do have a job for you. Do you accept?"

The Turk nodded.

Rufus continued. "I'd like you and Reno to go to the old ShinRa HQ ruins. There is a rebel faction based there, and I'd like you to keep an eye on them. They've got the wrong idea about us, and I'm afraid they may do something hasty."

Rude nodded, and turned to leave.

Rufus, curious as to why Rude's demeanor changed when Tifa was around, cleared his throat and said, "Do you have a fancy for Tifa, Rude?" He knew that Rude never lied; he'd always been very honest.

The Turk looked back at Rufus. "Well sir, its more of a crush. She's very pretty. I envy you, sir."

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Reno and Rude carefully made their way to the base. There were four of them, one short, hairy, and stout older man with glasses, a taller, younger looking man with huge muscles with buzzed brown hair, a young woman who was very fit with long red hair and a gorgeous figure, and finally the obvious leader, a very tall young man with jet black hair and had what looked like Reno's nightstick strapped to his back.

"So that's where that thing went…" Reno whispered.

"Huh?" Rude looked at him.

"Yeah, my nightstick got left behind in the building when it collapsed. That punk probably found it, thought it was cool, but it's not a toy, damn it!"

"Shh, not so loud."

"I wasn't being loud, Rude." Reno retorted.

"I didn't say anything, Reno." Rude replied, looking back at him.

"Then who…"

A hand clapped onto Reno's shoulder. He gave a sharp gasp.

Rude stifled a laugh. "Hi Cloud.

Cloud gave a smirk.

As Reno continued to pout, Cloud shook his head. "I can't hear them. We'll have to get closer.

"I say we split up into three different areas, that way if one of us gets caught, the other two can help the first out." Reno stated.

The other two nodded. Once everyone was positioned, they listened for any useful information.

"Look, Garner, I'm sick and tired of just sitting here. When are we going to do something? Blow up a building, burn bridge, _something_." The muscular man said.

"Shut up, dumbass, I'll tell you when its time." The leader, Garner, said.

The redheaded female spoke up. "Mallone has a point though, you know? We're tired of just sitting here. I bet AVALANCHE didn't sit around like this for ages."

Garner started to look angry. "Look Casey, I make the decisions around here. We're waiting for the opportune moment to attack. We have to kick ShinRa in the balls when they aren't looking. And we have to plan precisely. We don't want to get ready to attack without a direct plan. Do you understand?" He gruffly asked the girl.

She nodded slowly.

Then the short hairy man piped up. "We were unsuccessful in recruiting more manpower. We thought that Cloud, leader of the legendary AVALANCHE would help, however, he turned down our invitation, as well as the other remaining members. Alas, we were unable to reach Miss Tifa Lockhart, none of the former rebel group would reveal where she is, but there have been reports of her, sightings in Costa del Sol for one, last week. We couldn't be sure of whom she was staying with, but she did have an adult male staying in the same complex at the time. When I researched the owner of the villa, it was listed under ShinRa property. Therefore, we have made the assumption that she has either joined forces with ShinRa, or they have kidnapped her. She is now believed to be back in New Midgar at the new ShinRa building.

"Due to our limited resources, it is hard to track all Turks and Rufus. However, it is safe to assume they are all in New Midgar preparing for the grand opening of the city. And that's all the intelligence that I have been able to gather." He said, reading off a list in his greasy hands.

Reno's eyes widened. "Damn, we need an info guy like that."

Garner nodded his head at the short chubby man. "Thanks Morris, that was extremely informative. We'll add that data into planning our attack."

Mallone looked angry. "What exactly is this 'attack' we're planning? Where are we hitting and _when_?"

Garner shook his head. "Be patient. I will reveal our attack plans to you soon. For now, we need as much information as we can get. Morris, continue bringing in this data. The rest of you spread out and keep an eye on that ShinRa scumbag. Casey, I have a special job for you."

As he took her aside, the rest of the ragtag team took off in different directions, Mallone very nearly running over Reno's hiding place. None of the three could tell what Garner was saying to Casey, but soon she nodded her head and walked out of the area as well. Garner walked over to a house that was still slightly intact and let himself in.

The two Turks and ex-SOLDIER met up outside the city.

"What do you think he told her to do?" Reno queried.

"There's no telling, but since she's a woman it might be a decoy job. Or some sort of inside information job." Cloud said, narrowing his eyes and racking his brain.

"Well, we know what she looks like, and if she's in the city, we'll know." Rude mentioned, holding a small digital camera with Casey's image on the screen.

Reno rolled his eyes. "You took a picture of her 'cause you think she's cute, didn't you?"

Rude, not one easily able to lie, blushed a deep red.

"I knew it. She's off limits you know, and dangerous. But whatever dude, you really know how to pick 'em, don't you?" Reno sighed and walked off.

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A/n: Well here we are again, at the end of another chapter! This chapter was five pages; I hope that satisfies you enough till I write the next chapter! I'm hoping that there are still some of you out there reading this; I'm really surprised at the amount of people still reviewing! Keep it up; I really need the reviews to help me better my writing. Thank you to all the recent people who reviewed! You helped me crank out another chapter. Till next time!

Kage


	16. Chapter 16

Rufus stood in his bedroom, staring at a painting on the wall. It was old and worn, and slightly damaged, but it was his favorite painting in the whole HQ. It was of his mother, and it had been painted before he was born. She was sitting in a large overstuffed chair, her long blonde hair splayed over her shoulders, and her blue eyes followed the viewer. But she was painted with an affectionate look on her face. Rufus had the thought that she was always looking at him, and wondered, if there was an afterlife, if she was looking at him with the same loving gaze from where she was now.

He never had a chance to really know his mother; he just remembered how she looked. He had found the painting gathering dust in the lower levels of the old HQ in a storage room, before the explosion, and had it put in his Villa at Costa del Sol for safe keeping from his father. The painting had escaped his father's wrath somehow, and Rufus viewed it as a small miracle it was still intact and in decent condition. But the painting always made him feel warm when he looked at it, and he realized that she was a strong woman to have survived not only physically, but emotionally from the rampage her husband had gone on.

Thinking about this also lead his thoughts onto Cloud and how hard it must have been, growing up poor and dejected, his father killed and his former lavish lifestyle stripped away. But poor or not, he was lucky to have ended up with their mother. Not only this, but he had the chance to grow up in a normal setting, and also got to grow up with Tifa. Who also got to know his mother. This circle of thoughts wracked his brain, and he soon had to mentally tell himself "Quit feeling sorry for yourself. Life wasn't so bad, and it definitely isn't bad now. You're getting to be pathetic, Rufus."

Arms slipped around his waist from behind, almost startling him. "She was really pretty, you know. And she was the nicest woman. You have her eyes." Tifa's voice cooed.

Rufus smiled a rare smile. "Thank you. I appreciate that. Are you about ready for the ceremony?"

Impressed that her comment warranted the kind response, she replied, "Well, get an eyeful and you be the judge. What do you think?" She did a pirouette for him. Her formal gown was calf length, black satin, and accentuated her toned body, hugging her womanly curves. Her hair was done half up and curled ringlets spilled about her shoulders, framing her face.

Rufus gave a slack jawed stare. "Hm.. I'm thinking we should postpone this ceremony a few hours.. I want to peel that dress off you." He whispered in her ear, grabbing her waist vigorously.

She laughed. "Well, you'll just have to be patient till after. I'm not going to make the whole city wait just because Rufus Shinra wants some tail. Now roll your tongue back up into your head and finish getting ready."

He gave her a dejected look and sighed. "You torture me, woman." On his way to his walk-in closet, he chuckled. "You know, I was about to give you the most amazing ten minutes of your life."

She quickly replied, "Or the most amazing ten _seconds_ of my life, either or." She smirked and sauntered from the room, before he could reply.

Shaking off her uncommonly vicious sarcasm with a smirk, he continued to grab his suit coat and tie. A knock interrupted him again. "Come i-"

Reno entered without hesitation. "Boss, you may be interested to know, the enemy has intelligently decided to infiltrate our organization by sending in the incredibly gorgeous woman and make her join our ranks. There are two cliché methods she may try to carry out. She'll either try to be in the guard and carry out an assassination mission, or she'll try to seduce you into bed with her so you'll tell her all your deepest darkest secrets."

Rufus grinned. "Are we talking about Tifa or that other woman with the red hair? Because if it's the former, I think she's carried out her mission quite well. And so effortlessly too. Reno, where the hell were you, I thought you were supposed to guard your president from such wicked schemes against me?"

Reno coughed. "Sorry boss, you fell into_ that_ hole on the weekend I was busy being a construction worker, not a bodyguard. But in all seriousness, that Tidal Wave girl is here, and you need to tell me your depraved plan to do away with her body." He said as he began helping Rufus with his tie.

Rufus clicked his tongue with a smile. "Reno.. We don't _kill_ people anymore, you know that. We have to be much more creative. We can't very well give them more reason to hate us, can we? Can you bring Tifa back in here? I need her to be in the loop so _she_ won't kill me when we let the girl participate in the ceremony."

The redhead's mouth dropped open. "You're going to _let_ her participate? She may try to kill you!"

Rufus smirked. "Then the Turks aren't very good bodyguards, are they? Besides, we'll have her next to Tifa; I know at least _she'll_ try to protect me."

Reno sighed. "You're the boss. Just remember though, you didn't want to have her killed, and when we're scraping her remains off the side of the new office because Tifa char grilled her ass for grabbing your balls, I'm not getting in trouble, you hear?"

Rufus nodded. "I promise." He said, straightening his jacket.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

In town, Cloud and the rest of Avalanche were preparing for the ceremony, as well as for battle.

"Remember, we don't exactly know how many of them there actually are, so be aware of all the people around you." Cloud announced, checking to make sure everyone was prepared.

Barrett was shaking his head grimly. "I can' believe we actually in cahoots wit' dos ShinRa bastards. Cloud we ain' crazy, are we? We fo' sho' know that the ShinRa brat's gone good?"

"Tifa believes so, and if she does, so do I. I trust her judgment, even if I don't necessarily agree with her. We all have to trust her." Cloud replied.

Yuffie pulled at a bead strand on her dress. "I wish this ceremony thing wasn't so formal. I can't fight very well in a dress." She pushed a strand of her dark hair behind an ear, revealing red summon materia for earrings.

"Hey, you be careful with those things, Yuffie, I don't want people getting trampled to death by a fire breathing dragon simply because you sneezed the wrong way." Cloud said, noticing the excessive materia jewelry.

She snorted. "You can't blame me for wanting to be completely prepared for these copy-cat freaks. Who knows what kind of weird attack they're planning. We wouldn't have dared attack a packed venue like this. They must be completely retarded."

"We'll I guess we'll see how stupid they really are. The ceremony starts in ten minutes." Red XIII appeared behind Yuffie in a formal looking collar with a small tie hanging from the front. "I hate this thing, do I absolutely need to wear it?" He asked Yuffie.

"I think people might be a little freaked out by a sentient lion creature, and the tie makes you look less threatening. And it's cute. Quit complaining, Red." She replied, tugging his furry cheeks.

He pulled away from her. "You are evil." He then looked up at Vincent. "What is your take on this whole circus-like scenario? Do you think ShinRa and his goons will be able to contain the fear in the crowd when the attack occurs?"

"We can't be sure about anything, my friend. All we can do is help prevent mass hysteria. This would have been a good day, otherwise." The tall dark figure in the corner said, gripping the gun in his holster.

Cid took a drag off his cigarette. "I told Shera that I'd quit smokin'. Don't look like that's happenin' today, dammit. I wish this whole 'world peace' thing coulda lasted a tad longer. Damn stupid young' uns don't know what they're 'bout to start."

"Look guys, the only thing we can do is be completely prepared for anything. If they're smart, they'll wait till after the ceremony, and try to kill Rufus then. If not, which I'm afraid is going to be the case; we'll just have to cut them off at every turn. They don't know we're going to be here, and they definitely don't expect _us_ to fight them. We are their role models. So at least we have that advantage." Their blonde leader said hopefully. "Now let's get ready to head out. It's about that time. Spread out, and watch each other's backs."

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

Casey roamed the halls, waiting for word on what would be her fate. Did they know who she was? Why was it taking so long? Would she get to meet the man she was eventually going to kill? She recalled what Garner had told her, "Through any means necessary, kill that bastard if you can. I don't care if you have to sleep with him and then murder him in his slumber; you send that _demon_ to his _grave_." The words echoed through her brain. She hoped it wouldn't come to that, but she knew that if she must, she must. Her job was the most important of the group, and that was to infiltrate the company and if she got the chance, kill Rufus ShinRa.

A door started to open, and she straightened her posture. A redheaded Turk, who she knew to be Reno, stepped out of doorway and began walking to her. "Well, it seems we have an opening. I was told by your testing recruiters that you are an excellent martial artist and weapon master. Would you like to participate in the ceremony?" He asked her genuinely.

"_Too easy_." She thought, and nodded her head. "I'd love to!"

He smiled at her. "I'm glad you're excited. We decided that you'd be best protecting Ms. Lockheart, who is helping conduct the ceremony. How does that sound?"

Casey's heart fluttered. Tifa Lockheart was her all-time hero. When she was celebrated as a world savior, Casey had instantly decided that she wanted to be exactly like her. She had trained two years straight to learn martial arts. And when she heard of the rebel group Tidal Wave, she immediately wanted to join. How Tifa came to be associated with ShinRa mattered little to her at this point, and her excitement was hardly easy to contain. "Really? Yes! Tifa Lockheart? She's going to help with the ceremony?"

Reno nodded. "Yes, she's been helping us put plans together for New Midgar, as well as for the ceremony going on today. You're lucky we were shorthanded. Normally there is a much harder background check we do for new recruits, but the first one turned back up relatively clean. You have a few parking tickets you need to clear up, however." He smiled.

She giggled innocently. "Yeah, those meter maids are sneaky! So, when do I get to meet her?"

"In a few minutes, she's clearing up the last few details with Mr. ShinRa, and then we'll be on our way. I see the uniform the recruiters gave you fits nicely. I think you'll do just fine." Reno laughed on the inside as he said 'Mr. ShinRa', but managed to keep a straight face. "Do you have any questions?"

She thought for a moment. "How do I know where to stand? And will I get to meet Mr. ShinRa? I'm kind of a fan." She said, trying to sound like she had a crush on him.

"You'll follow Ms. Lockheart out on stage, and then you'll stand behind her, and I'm not sure about meeting him, he's been very busy today." He patted her on the shoulder. "Just relax, the ceremony is just a meet and greet, with an induction and short formal procedure, to start the new city off with a good vibe. We're trying to get back in touch with the people we've hurt in the past, and trying to give back as much as we have taken away. Believe it or not, there are actually people who think we're still up to no good. It seems that no matter how hard you try to make amends to the world, you still end up being hated by some."

Reno's wholehearted attempt to try and alter her thinking seemed to confuse her. She nodded slowly, but before she could reply, the door opened again, revealing Rufus ShinRa himself. Casey took in a sharp breath.

Rufus approached the two redheads. "Well, I see we have a replacement for the sick guard. Hello miss, Casey, was it? I'm Rufus ShinRa, pleased to make your acquaintance." He made a motion to shake her nervous and trembling hand. "Reno, see to it that she gets short term living quarters set up, we're having honored guests stay here tonight, and we're going to need double the guard staff. I trust you'll be very comfortable; you'll have a queen sized bed, all to yourself, and a stocked fridge just in case you get hungry during your stay. We like to keep our staff relaxed, since they do so much for us."

Her astonished stare was more than enough to let Rufus know that she was exceedingly confused with his polite etiquette. "I'm sorry, I forgot to have the recruiters let you know that you'd be staying with us, do you need overnight clothing? We would be more than happy to provide them to you." He gave his much practiced kind smile.

She was speechless, and her heart was pounding, she could hear it. A tight knot was forming in her chest, and she felt the urge to empty the contents of her stomach. "Um, yes actually. I appreciate it. It's so nice to finally meet you, President ShinRa." She feigned a smile. The man she was sent here to execute was standing in front of her, treating her with more respect and kindness than she'd ever received in her entire life. She knew that he could merely be putting on a show to throw off her judgment, but she never imagined he'd be this good at hiding his pure evil. He was a first-rate actor.

"Please, call me Rufus. I hate the term 'president'; it reminds me of my father, and of the old ShinRa tradition. I seek to change that. We hope to show today in particular that we are atoning for that ugly past… I apologize; I guess I should save the speech for the crowd. Reno, take her in to see Tifa, so that they can get acquainted. Thank you, Casey." He gave her a bow, and sidestepped to let her and Reno go through the doorway.

Casey's head was floating. There was a feeling deep in the pit of her stomach that she shouldn't be here, and yet, she knew that she must complete her mission, no matter what it took. She followed Reno through the door, casting a look back over her shoulder at what was supposed to be the most ruthless man on the planet. But all she could see was a penitent man, someone who seemed to be telling the truth. "There's no way in hell he could be a changed man. No way. Remember what they did to the planet, the people they killed with the plate in sector 7; remember he kidnapped Tifa and Barrett." She repeated to herself, trying to get back on track.

Rufus watched the pair walk away, and he wholeheartedly hoped that he made an impression. He knew that she wouldn't trust him, and he knew that she had a plan to kill him, but maybe, just maybe, he could disarm her a bit, to put a dent in the shield she was carrying against him. The only chance he had to lessen the blow of the impending attack was to soften her outlook, so that maybe she could persuade her rebel group that ShinRa wasn't on a hidden agenda. If he couldn't talk to the leader of the rag-tag group, he could at least get through to the young woman.

Reno reappeared from the room. "I don't know why you're going through with this. You're making my job very hard. Why don't we just take her to a holding cell and tell her we know who she is and why she's here?"

"Because that would scare her into trusting us _less,_ and it would only make matters worse. Then, somehow, word would get out to the rebels that we are holding her, and would only fan the flames. You know that. We're treading on eggshells already; we don't need any bad press. Besides, what am I paying you for? Now be a good bodyguard and prepare to save my life if you need to." Keeping a cool demeanor, he turned around and waited for Reno to follow.

Reno sighed. "Yeah, yeah."

Inside the room, Casey was floored at meeting Tifa, face to face. "I can't believe I'm actually getting to meet you! You are my hero; I wanted to be just like you!" Her face was flushing almost as red as her hair.

Tifa chuckled. "Is that so? Why's that?" She sized up the young woman mentally who was telling her story about Tifa's impact on her life, wondering how a girl like her managed to fall into a group like Tidal Wave.

Casey was 5'4", skinnier than Tifa, but still toned. Her red hair was long, down to her mid back, and her brown eyes and freckles made her look much younger than she actually was. Tifa guessed she was about 19.

When she was done raving about how cool she thought Tifa was, she blushed. "I'm sorry. I probably look real silly blabbing like I am."

Tifa gave a warm smile. "Nah, it's ok. I'm actually a lot like that sometimes. So what brings you to ShinRa?" She wondered what kind of story she'd tell her.

"Well, I was against it at first, because I knew what they did in the past. But I saw that _you_ were taking part in it so, and I know your judgment can't be wrong." Casey's hand started shaking. "Which reminds me, why _are _you taking part in this?"

The brunette grinned. "Well, the opportunity kind of knocked me off my feet in a way. You see, I was a little wary myself when I found out that Rufus was still alive, and was active. But then I found out what was being done, and with all Rufus' resources being used to better the planet, and the lives of the people living on it, I knew I had to help, especially with their image. It would be hard to get people to trust ShinRa again, so I'm helping them with that. Rufus isn't as bad as people make him out to be at all. He's kind, if not but a little condescending, but that's just his upbringing.

"All of the homes built in this new city were built with ShinRa money, and are being supplied to the people who had homes or lived in Midgar when it was destroyed. And then more homes were built to be sold to people who want to move here. The air here is clean now, because ShinRa is using recycled energy, and is researching new ways to produce energy. They have literally cleaned up their act, and are trying to help people now, not themselves."

Tifa sighed. "It's just going to be hard to convince _everyone_, because there are conspiracy theorists out there who just don't want to believe anything good comes from ShinRa."

Casey cringed. She was in a sort of conflict with herself, because she knew she was one of those so called 'conspiracy theorists', but she was also finding it hard to disprove Tifa's words to herself. In a perfect world, she could just go along with what Tifa was saying, but she knew that ShinRa had methods of brainwashing people.

Tifa continued. "The saddest part is that I don't think they have anything to prove otherwise. They just believe it because the bad stuff impacted them so hard. It will be hard to heal the wounds that ShinRa inflicted in the past. And I think others jump on the bandwagon because they like conflict, or think they're badass for being rebels.

"When I was in Avalanche, we had a purpose. We destroyed the things that were hurting our planet, and didn't go after people unless we absolutely had to. We didn't kill President ShinRa, Sephiroth did, and we killed Sephiroth because he was sending a meteor at our planet. I'm afraid that what we've done is spawn a breed of people who think they have to copy our endeavors for the wrong reasons. I wish those people would get their facts straight." Tifa, caught in a Rufus-like speech, was trying to make Casey feel like what she was doing was wrong, and hoped she was making an impression.

And it was working. Casey was feeling more and more uncomfortable by the minute. The last thing she ever wanted to do was make Tifa Lockheart feel that her purpose was mistaken. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it for lack of words.

Tifa smiled at her. "Oh, see now I'm the one rambling. I'm sorry; I got caught in the moment. These things have been weighing heavy on my mind, and I guess I just needed to get it out. I just hope that having this ceremony was the right idea. We're putting a lot of people out in the open that the public may not receive well, and if anything happens to Rufus, this whole production is in jeopardy. We'll lose his funding for the housing people are getting, and a lot of people may be back on the streets as a result. So do me a favor. I'm not worried about people attacking me, so if you can, please, keep a close eye on him, and protect him. He's the only reason good things are happening to the survivors of the Midgar incident."

Casey was taken aback. Her hero, the person she looked up to more than anything, was asking her to protect the person she was sent to kill. Speechless, she thought about Tifa's words, and how if Rufus was dead, people would be homeless. That seemed impossible to her. Rufus ShinRa was evil, and that's all she'd ever known. But the things she had learned today were starting to erase that thought in her head. The conflict in her brain was a war on everything she knew vs. what Tifa had told her. She needed to talk to Garner. Fast.

Before she could answer Tifa, Elena poked her head into the room. "Hey, Tifa, Casey, we're heading out. You need to be behind Rufus."

Tifa nodded and looked at Casey. "You ready?"

Casey nodded back at her. But she was far from ready.

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A/N: CLIFFHANGER! Omg, I cannot believe how long it has taken me to get these chapters up… and truth be told, I actually have had this written for a little while.. (v.v) I'm sorry. This story is coming VERY close to ending, probably in one or two chapters, I will be able to put a 'complete' sticker on it and be done with it. Enjoy guys, don't forget to review!!!


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: No, amazingly, I am not dead. Though the length of time it takes me to update chapters is appalling, I do realize. But I'm getting my life in order and everything is finally getting to be regulated now, I work a normal job, 9-5, and I'm currently _not_ going to school. And my husband is in Iraq, (yes, I got married ;D) and I have a lot of spare time. So stuff should get updated a lot more now. I hope you guys enjoy, I'm almost done with this one!

************

Rufus stepped out onto the stage, the feeling inside of him one that he hadn't felt in a long time. He had a mixture of worry, stress, and fear welling up inside, not because he was afraid for his life, but because of all days, he wished that this would be the one that nothing would go wrong, when he knew the inevitability of such an idea was a mountain against him. And he also knew that once the rebels saw that Tifa was on his side, their anger would turn to her. His biggest concern was Casey. She would be standing in prime position if she so decided that this was the perfect time to assassinate him.

The crowd had gone silent. Most of the city's people knew that Rufus was the benefactor that had funded the local construction, but they probably hadn't expected him to make a speech. Luckily for Rufus, as he scanned the crowd's sea of faces, he didn't see anyone who looked angered or annoyed by his presence. He managed to find one or two of the former members of AVALANCHE, and it calmed him to know that they had shown up.

Tifa walked out onto the stage, and there were some gasps and some clapping, Rufus chuckled, yet another thing that calmed him, knowing that the people received her warmly. She was to make the first speech, and warm up the crowd for Rufus.

She stepped up to the podium and adjusted the microphone to her lips, and then smiled. "Hello, people of Midgar. My name is Tifa Lockhart, former member of AVALANCHE. Today is a wonderful day for Midgar. This town has seen its share of tragedies. We've been through a great deal, and seen much despair. But now, we're on the verge of a new beginning, a new age."

Tifa continued on in her speech, the people's faces brightening with every word. "ShinRa as a company has caused grief in the past. But like our city, they are undergoing massive change at the capable hands of Rufus ShinRa. Many of you have seen him lending his own hand in the construction of various homes and buildings. Without his help and funding, Midgar would still be a near barren wasteland of debris and falling buildings. And now, I invite him to come up and address you all himself." She stepped to the side and clapped along with everyone else.

As Rufus smiled and walked over to the podium, Casey shifted uncomfortably. Tifa's words tore at her heart. She could really see no wrong in what Rufus was doing with his company now. She couldn't recall any information that Garner had that indicated that Rufus had recently done anything wrong. It was all in the past. And had he really done anything himself? What if he was different than his father? Where they attempting to assassinate him just because of his name? There were so many questions she couldn't answer. She couldn't think of anything that told her than this man should die immediately.

Rufus started his speech, surprised at how quiet the crowd was. They really were interested in what he had to say. "People of Midgar, I know that in the past, my company under my father has made a bad name for itself. I don't plan on making excuses. I fully accept the responsibility. I seek to right those sins myself. That is why I have donated my time and money to rebuilding Midgar. I know that it is a very small step, but know that there are more good things to come. In memory of Midgar, we dub the new city New Midgar, to commemorate a new beginning, a fresh start."

As Rufus continued his speech, Casey shook her head. If she was going to do it, she should have done it already. She was running out of time. Rufus was coming to the end of his speech. She shook her head. She'd heard way too much in favor of the president to think about possibly ruining a city full of people's lives for wrong information. If she was to kill Rufus and he'd done nothing wrong, the city wouldn't get finished. And it would be her fault. She didn't want to risk that. And if Garner had a problem with it, she'd have her own talk with him. She let Rufus finish his speech and clapped when he was done, biting her lip in nervousness. She knew that there was going to be an attack very soon, and Garner would be seriously angry that she hadn't taken her chance.

Rufus glanced at Casey, quickly erasing the small look of surprise off of his face. He was slightly amazed that she hadn't attacked. Maybe Tifa's and his words had made an impression. He moved back to stand next to Tifa, eyes darting around the crowd for the impending attack.

There was a glint of light from the back of the crowd. Rufus' eyes immediately shifted to it, as well as Reno and Rude. Not two seconds later, the Rufus realized that it was a distraction. He pulled out his shotgun from his coat as a shot rang out and he dove, pushing Tifa out of the way as well, the bullet bit through his shoulder and pain shot through his body. His wounded arm dropped the shotgun as he slumped over in agonizing pain. The crowd immediately went into hysterics and chaos ensued. People were screaming and running in every direction.

Tifa screamed, "Rufus!" and dropped to his side, tending his wound quickly, while Reno and Rude and Elena formed a defensive wall in front of them.

Out in the crowd, Cloud and the others scanned the commotion for the offending gun.

Garner jumped out from his hiding spot and onto the stage. "Rufus ShinRa, prepare to die. Your reign of terror of the people of Midgar is over."

Casey jumped forward. "Garner NO! He hasn't done anything wrong!"

Garner's eyes widened. "Casey, get out of the way, we went over this. Did they get to you?" He said through gritted teeth. He looked around. His team was supposed to be on stage with him now. What was keeping them? He spotted each of them, engaged in battles across the gathering. His mouth fell open.

His men were all fighting members of AVALANCHE. Their heroes.

Casey stood in front of Garner. "Look, even AVALANCHE knows this is wrong. Don't you think you're chasing this blindly?"

Rufus winced as he struggled to stand, Tifa holding him at his good arm, the blood from his wounded arm dripping down to the floor. He stared at Garner. "What exactly is it that you stand to gain by my death?"

Garner glowered at Rufus. "The death of ShinRa as a whole. You are the last heir. I seek to finish what AVALANCHE didn't."

Cloud suddenly jumped onstage. The other former members of AVALANCHE were finishing off the rest of the members of the terrorist group. Cloud stared hard at Garner. "You guys are idiots. Do you think that if ShinRa was doing anything wrong, we'd continue to let him do it? Look around you. This whole city has him to thank for new homes, new businesses. And you want to kill him simply because the company has a bad past? I think you're just looking for glory. And this is the saddest attempt I've ever seen to achieve it."

Garner's eyes lowered for a moment. It almost seemed like he was sorry, thinking about his actions.

Cloud nodded, assuming that his words had gotten through. He turned to look at Rufus. "Is everyone all right? We didn't see the guy with the sniper till the last second."

Rufus nodded. "Everyone up here is fine. I'll get my arm taken care of as soon as the fighting dies down."

Reno and Rude went to help the others that were still fighting, and Elena stood at Rufus' other arm to steady him as Cloud asked him questions.

Garner's muscles tensed. How dare Cloud speak to him as if he were a child. They'd done their research, they had a purpose. They were not subordinate, they had good reasons. He grimaced and gripped his hand to the dagger at his belt, launching himself at Rufus; once he was dead, the spell over everyone would be broken, and they would see what he saw in Rufus: a monster.

Rufus' eyes widened as he saw Garner flying at him. He pushed both Tifa and Elena away from the danger, readying himself for the blow. There was a loud clanging noise, and Rufus looked up to see Cloud standing in front of him, warding off the attack with his sword.

Tifa charged forward and stomp kicked Garner in the chest with her heel, sending him flying backward. Casey knocked him from the air downward, planting him on his back hard on the ground. To everyone's surprise, hands grabbed Garner at the shoulders and dragged him off the stage, and a crowd of construction workers and other men held him captive. He fought unsuccessfully against the men, screaming at them. "Don't you know that you're protecting a monster?! Don't you remember what ShinRa did?!?!" The crowd ignored his screams, and one man tore a strip of fabric from his shirt to tie around Garner's mouth.

Rufus stared, a little unbelieving at what he was seeing. The men from the crowd had returned and had grabbed all of the members of the terrorist group and were holding them all down. It wasn't something that Rufus was used to, seeing normal people fighting for him. The city's inhabitants were actually fighting to keep him safe. He was completely amazed.

And almost as quickly as it had begun, it was over.

New Midgar had a proper police force now; Rufus had relinquished power over the legal system a long time ago, so the police force took the offending terrorist group in. One by one, they were loaded into a squad van in handcuffs.

An officer walked over to where Casey was standing with Tifa and the others. "Casey, as a part of the terrorist group Tidal Wave, I'm placing you under arrest-"

Rufus cut in, "Officer, what are you doing? Casey is one of my bodyguards. She helped take down the leader of the terrorist group. She did nothing wrong."

Casey's eyes popped wide open with surprise. She had been fully ready to go to jail for her association with Garner and the others.

The officer, equally as surprised, blinked. "Are you sure you don't want to press charges against her?"

Rufus shook his head. "Of course not. She is employed by ShinRa Inc. She's not going to jail."

Casey walked forward and grabbed Rufus' good hand. "I.. I don't know how to repay you…"

Rufus shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, I wouldn't mind you sticking around as a body guard, if you need a job." His gamble with hiring her on was a risk that proved to be a wise decision, though the circumstances that followed were something that he had far from expected.

"I would love to. Thank you so much, Rufus." Casey said, grinning wide, happy that she hadn't followed Garner's orders. Rufus was nothing like Garner had described.

Tifa grinned at Rufus' kind action and kissed him on the cheek. "That was very sweet of you. I'm giving you 150 points for that." She said, chuckling in his ear as the grin played across his face. "Now let's get you some medical attention for that arm."

Rufus stopped as they started to walk by Cloud. "I want to thank you and your team formally. This would have been an even bigger mess had you not been here. I'd like you all to join me at dinner tonight, and we have rooms ready for you at the HQ." He smirked. "I know how hard it must have been defending my life against that overzealous brat instead of letting him plunge that knife into me."

Cloud gave an expressionless look at Rufus. "I may not like you as a person, but what you're doing for the city, and for Tifa, that was something that needed to be protected. Besides, I don't think our mother would be very happy with me if I just let you die. I can learn to live with your less than pleasant personality, I suppose." He grinned.

Rufus returned the grin as Tifa pulled at him to return to the headquarters. She turned her head to mouth "Thank you," at Cloud as they went inside.

*********

Once the bullet had been extracted from his shoulder, Rufus' arm had already started to feel much better. Tifa had resolved to play nurse that night and rewrap his arm before dinner. She helped him strip off his shirt carefully.

"I can't believe they actually got a shot off on me. I'm going to fire every last one of the Turks." Rufus mumbled as Tifa cut away the old bandaging.

She sat on the bed next to him. "Oh, hush. They set up a distraction, and you nearly fell for it as well. Don't start. They did a good job of protecting you. Everyone did." She threw away the old bandage at the bedside trashcan.

Rufus winced as she cleaned the wound with antiseptic. "I know, I must admit, I was quite surprised when the city people came back. OW woman, easy, it's a bullet wound, not a scratch!" He clenched his jaw.

She chuckled. "Quit being a baby. I have to clean it. You don't want it getting infected and then you lose an arm! And don't call me woman, that's 15 points!"

His eyebrows knitted into a frown. "That shouldn't count, you're mauling my arm! And I still don't even know what these points are adding up to!" He said clenching his fist to dispel the pain.

Tifa grinned. "You'll find out soon enough." She took a fresh roll of bandaging and gently wound it around his bare arm and shoulder. "There." She leaned forward and kissed it tenderly. "How does it feel now?"

Rufus had to admit, now that she was done, it was almost as if it didn't hurt at all. "It feels much better, thank you. So, Dr. Lockhart, am I well enough to go to dinner? Or do you think I'll be too rude to your friends?" He asked, chuckling.

"I think you'll be just fine. I trust you." She stood up and smiled down at him.

He grabbed her waist and pulled her to him, and rested his head against her stomach, closing his eyes. "Thank you. You have no idea how much those words can mean to a person."

Tifa smiled as her heart fluttered in her chest. She'd never seen him so candid before. She ran her fingers through his hair, lightly raking his scalp with her fingertips.

Rufus shivered. He looked up at her with a smirk. "Do you think they'll mind if we're a few minutes late?" He asked, leaning backward to lie on the bed, pulling her down on top of him and wrapping his arms around her.

Tifa couldn't deny that just lying there with him, her head on his bare chest felt amazingly good, especially after the stressful day they'd just had. She chuckled. "Maybe just a few, but if I break down and let you have your way, we'll be here all night. And I'm just too hungry." She kissed his chest and pushed herself up and off the bed. She extended her hand out to him to help him up.

Rufus sighed and sat up and grabbed her hand. "Either you have extremely good self control, or my amazing charm is slipping." He said with a grin as he stood and wrapped his arms around her again.

She shrugged and looked up into his sky blue eyes. "I'm used to wanting things and having to work to get them, unlike you, who merely have to buy it. So work first, play later." She said, tiptoeing to plant a kiss on his lips.

Rufus smiled and nodded. "Fair enough." He buried his face in the crook of her neck and kissed the soft skin there. He turned to grab a fresh button up shirt and gingerly put it on. Grasping Tifa's hand, he led her from the room to join the others for dinner.

In the dining hall, the other former members of AVALANCHE gathered, sitting at the table and talking about the day. They quieted when Rufus and Tifa entered the room. Rufus pulled a chair out for Tifa and then seated himself.

"I want to thank you all for what you did today. Protecting this city is going to be my first priority and you helped me do that today. I know that in the past we were enemies, but I hope that we can get past that, and together we can build a better Midgar and a better life for all those who live here. You all are heroes to the people, and now are even more so. I've prepared rooms for you if you'd like to stay, for as long as you'd like, if you would like to further help me with the city." Rufus said as he looked at the faces of the people who once hated him. There were still a few of them who peered warily at him, Barret and Yuffie and Cid were among those, but the others looked at him like they understood his words, and his reason for changing.

Once the dinner was brought out, Barret had to look around at everyone else before he ate, as if he thought the food might be poisoned, but once no one dropped dead, he dug into his plate as well as Rufus chuckled to himself.

Tifa suddenly realized something. Both Rufus and Cloud were very similar, they both had sins in the past that they were faced to deal with. But they dealt with it in very different ways. Cloud chose to run from people. He chose to deal with the problems himself. But Rufus made changes to himself, to his company. He chose to right the sins with self made miracles to the people he'd hurt.

Though Rufus was far from being an altruistic person, he did keep other's needs in mind, even if they weren't necessarily first. She watched him speak with her friends almost as a completely different person, not the Rufus ShinRa that had been in control of the company when Sephiroth was alive. She wondered if she played a big role in the persona change.

Almost everyone decided to stay after dinner, Vincent was the only one who'd left. Tifa assumed that there were just too many bad memories for him in a ShinRa office building, so she understood.

When everyone had left to check out their rooms, Rufus walked over to Tifa. "So, do I get any points for that?" he asked with a grin.

She smiled at him and threw her arms around his neck. "Rufus, you blew the lid off of your points program. I am more than impressed."

He kissed her forehead. "Well, I must say, I did have a very good teacher. Thank you for all you've done for me, Tifa."

She beamed back up at him. "Rufus, you know you could have pulled this off without me…"

He shook his head. "No, I was still very full of myself when we started all this. You made me realize that making up for my past wasn't about me. It was what I could do for others. I hate to say this, but I think you've made me… pleasant." He grinned at her.

She chuckled at him. "We still have a long way to go to make you close to 'pleasant'." She said, tapping his nose.

Casey stood in the doorway, mouth agape. The sight before her was something she could hardly fathom. Tifa Lockhart was in the arms of Rufus ShinRa. Thinks made a little more sense now, why Tifa was helping Rufus out, why Rufus had done such a good job at making a 180 from the person he'd been before. But she had to admit, they were a cute couple. "Uh.. S..sir?" She stammered out, hating to ruin the moment between them.

Rufus and Tifa looked over at Casey. "Yes?" Rufus answered.

"All the AVALANCHE members have been escorted to their rooms. And they were quite happy with them. What else should I do tonight, sir?" She was a bit unsure of what to do as a new recruit, but she was very happy that Rufus had given her a second chance.

Rufus shook his head. "I think you've done quite enough for the day. Thank you again for your good work. I'm glad we hired you on. You can retire to your quarters, if you like."

Casey smiled wide. "Thank you, for saving me from jail…"

Tifa smiled back at her. "You saved yourself from jail, you have a good head on your shoulders, and you know the difference between right and wrong. Which is why Rufus decided to make you a permanent employee. We knew who you were and what you were sent for before he hired you." She said, grinning.

Casey's eyes widened. And they still let her stand on stage with him? She was amazed.

Rufus chuckled. "Tifa has a tendency of taking the words right out of my mouth, but yes, we did know. But we hoped that we could show and tell you enough to change your mind before hand. And luckily, we played our cards right, and you made your own decisions. I'm just sorry we couldn't do the same for your friends."

Casey shrugged. "Like you said, we made our own decisions. I'm just glad I made mine in time." She said smiling before excusing herself to her room.

Tifa smiled as she watched Casey go. "I think she'll make a good Turk someday."

Rufus nodded. "Yes, she shows some great potential. But she's just yet another example of you as a role model." He said, grinning.

Tifa rolled her eyes. "Flattery will get you nowhere with me."

Rufus smirked. "Ah, but those points I earned will, will they not?"

Tifa grinned back. "I'll show you exactly what those points got you."

*******

A/N: OMG… Is it true..? An update a week from the last?!?! And.. its … its finished?! Well, that really all depends on you, loyal readers. I actually have an alternated ending to this. However: It is a little darker, and not everyone walks away as happy as they did. I'm also thinking of a sequel, but I want to hear from you. That's right, reader poll time!! Question 1. Do you want me to show you the alternate ending? Question 2. Do you want a sequel? I have a lot more time now, peeps, and I find myself writing more and more. So this is prime time for a sequel if you wanna see it. Lemme know in your reviews!!

Kage3


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